In preparation for next year’s Olympic Games in Paris, the U-22 men’s soccer team will train in France during the A-Match in November.
“The Olympic team, led by coach Hwang Sun-hong, will hold a training camp in France from Nov. 13-22,” the Korea Football Association said on Tuesday.
The team will play a practice match against a local professional team in Le Havre, France, on Nov. 17 and an exhibition match against the French U-21 national team in Le Havre on Nov. 20.
The Olympic soccer team qualified for the 2024 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-23 Championship in September and is preparing for the U-23 Asian Cup in Qatar next April-May. The team must finish in the top three at the Asian Cup to qualify for the Paris Olympics.
After coaching the team to a gold medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, Hwang will now focus on the Olympic Games.
“To help him transition to full-scale Olympic preparations, Huang has prioritized training and local trials in France, the host country of the Paris Olympics, while planning domestic and international training during the November A-match,” the Football Association said.
France and other European U-21 teams are qualifying for the 2025 European Football Association (UEFA) U-21 Championship during the A-Match, and the French U-21s have no qualifiers in November after their Nov. 17 match against Austria, so this trial was made possible, the federation said.
The KFA added that Hwang is also considering calling up overseas players in the age group for the training camp. 파워볼분석