Hwang Sun-hong (born 14 July 1968) is a South Korean football manager and former player. He is currently manager of K League 1 club Daejeon Hana Citizen. During his playing career, he played for the South Korea national team at the 1990, 1994 and 2002 FIFA World Cups.
Club career After graduating from Konkuk University, Hwang decided not to enter his country's K League and began his senior career in Germany. During his first season as a senior player, he played for the reserve team of Bayer Leverkusen, scoring 16 goals at the Oberliga Nordrhein, Germany's third division at the time.
The next season, Hwang joined 2. Bundesliga side Wuppertaler SV, but he appeared in only nine matches due to a cruciate ligament injury.
Hwang joined K League club POSCO Atoms (currently Pohang Steelers) after returning to South Korea in June 1993. He won two Asian Club Championships with Pohang, whereas he failed to win a K League title. In 1995, he scored in eight consecutive K League matches, setting a record.
In 1998, Hwang moved to J1 League club Cerezo Osaka. At the 1999 J1 League, he scored 24 goals during 25 appearances, becoming the top goalscorer. He is the first South Korean footballer to become the top scorer at a foreign league. That year, he was also nominated for the Asian Footballer of the Year by the Asian Football Confederation. In late 2003, he retired as a player, and started his coaching career.
International career 1990 World Cup An unknown college player, Hwang was suddenly selected for the South Korea national team for the 1988 AFC Asian Cup by manager Lee Hoe-taik. At the tournament, he scored his first and second goals against Japan and Iran respectively.
Hwang was included in the national team for the 1990 FIFA World Cup after showing his outstanding performances including seven goals during the qualifying campaign. However, he had difficulty in performing teamwork, while South Korea lost all three group stage matches at the competition.
1994 World Cup Hwang showed poor performances, with he scoring only one goal in the qualifiers for the 1994 FIFA World Cup. He gradually regained his capability in friendly matches just before the World Cup, but injured his left knee in the last friendly against Honduras. Although he was not in a stable condition, manager Kim Ho used him as a main striker at the competition. He apologised to his teammates after their first group stage match against Spain, where he missed two crucial chances. In the second match against Bolivia, he continuously missed several chances, and South Korea had to face a goalless draw. He scored a goal in the last group stage against defending champions Germany, but the match ended in a 3–2 defeat. After South Korea was eliminated in the group stage, he was severely blamed for his inexact shots against Bolivia by South Korean fans, suffering from social anxiety disorder.
1996 Summer Olympics In contrast with fans' criticism, Hwang was consistently chosen as a striker of the national team by managers. At the 1994 Asian Games, he scored eleven goals in five matches, becoming the tournament's top goalscorer.
Hwang also played for the South Korea under-23 team as an overage player at the 1996 Summer Olympics. He contributed to a victory by winning a crucial penalty in the first match against Ghana, but he quit the tournament due to an injury in the first half of the second match.
Hwang looked forward to the 1998 FIFA World Cup to make up for his failure at the 1994 World Cup, but he was injured by Chinese goalkeeper Jiang Jin in a friendly just before the World Cup. He was excluded from South Korea's line-up during the tournament.
2002 World Cup During the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup, Hwang won the Bronze Shoe after scoring in two victories over Mexico and Australia.
Hwang was still South Korea's first-choice striker even at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He scored the opener in the first match against Poland, which ended in a 2–0 win, helping South Korea achieve their first-ever win at the FIFA World Cup. In the second match, a 1–1 draw with the United States, he had injured his head, but won a penalty after wrapping a bandage around his head. In a 5–3 penalty shoot-out win of a quarter-final match against Spain, he scored South Korea's first penalty.
Hwang made 103 appearances and 50 goals for South Korea alongside six operations due to injuries. He ended his international career after the 2002 World Cup.
Coaching career In 2005, Hwang was appointed as assistant coach of Jeonnam Dragons and started his coaching career. He received Best Coach Award at the 2006 Korean FA Cup. On 4 December 2007, he signed a three-year contract with Busan IPark, becoming their manager.
Managerial career Pohang Steelers On 9 November 2010, Hwang returned to his former team Pohang Steelers as a new manager. He guided Pohang to the second place in the regular season of the 2011 K-League, and a Korean FA Cup title in 2012. He preferred the club's youth players to foreign players, and completed high-quality teamwork nicknamed the "Steel-taka". He became one of the most notable managers in South Korea after winning the K League 1 and the Korean FA Cup simultaneously in 2013.
FC Seoul
On 21 June 2016, Hwang was appointed manager of another K League 1 club FC Seoul. He successfully finished the rest of the 2016 season by bringing the K League 1 title. However, his discernment in the transfer market was not good and newcomers chosen by him showed poor performances. He was also in severe conflict with veteran players Dejan Damjanović, Osmar and Park Chu-young, failing to control them. Due to his poor results in subsequent seasons, he finally resigned on 30 April 2018.
Yanbian Funde On 14 December 2018, Hwang was appointed manager of Yanbian Funde. He left the club after Yanbian Funde were disqualified for the 2019 China League One due to their back taxes in February 2019.
Daejeon Hana Citizen K League 2 club Daejeon Citizen were reorganised under the name of Daejeon Hana Citizen by their new owners Hana Financial Group before the 2020 season, and chose Hwang as their first manager on the recommendation of Huh Jung-moo, their director and Hwang's former mentor. Hwang was criticised for his tactics by the board during the season and also came into conflict with Huh. As a result, he left Daejeon in the middle of the season.
South Korea U23 Hwang was selected as manager of the South Korea under-23 team in September 2021, but worried a considerable number of Koreans due to his poor results at Seoul and Daejeon. He once again had difficulty bringing a successful outcome by being eliminated in the quarter-finals of the 2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup after a 3–0 defeat to Japan. Afterwards, he won all seven matches at the 2022 Asian Games, making a chance to rehabilitate himself. He was also appointed interim manager of the senior national team on 27 February 2024. However, his managerial career did not go into reverse, with South Korea failing to qualify for the Olympic football for the first time in 40 years since 1984. His team were eliminated in the U-23 Asian Cup quarter-finals once more after suffering a penalty shoot-out defeat to Indonesia.
South Korea In February 2024, Hwang was chosen as South Korea's caretaker manager, replacing Jürgen Klinsmann to prepare for two FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Thailand. Under his short-lived tenure, South Korea were held to a shock 1–1 draw at home, but gained a 3–0 away win.
Return to Daejeon On 5 June 2024, Hwang received one more opportunity from Daejeon Hana Citizen, who were promoted to the K League 1 after he left. The continuation of his managerial career caused controversy, but he succeeded in helping them escape the relegation zone that year. The next year, his team finished second at the league, qualifying for the 2026–27 AFC Champions League Elite.
Career statistics Club + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition Club Season League National cup League cup Continental Total Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps GoalsBayer Leverkusen II1991–92Oberliga Nordrhein2416———2416Wuppertaler SV1992–932. Bundesliga93??——93Pohang Steelers1993K League00—10—101994K League145—00—1451995K League2411—20—26111996K League13100053??18131997K League001010??201998K League100022??32Total522610115??6431Cerezo Osaka1998J1 League116??00—1161999J1 League2524??23—2727Total3630??23—3833Suwon Samsung Bluewings2000K League000010 10Kashiwa Reysol2000J1 League61??10—712001J1 League2110??40—25102002J1 League71??00—71Total3412??50—3912Jeonnam Dragons2002K League000000—00Career total1558710198??17595
International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsSouth Korea198852198912819901761993611994171619953119961081998831999502000202001722002113Total10350
Results list South Korea's goal tally first. + List of international goals scored by Hwang Sun-hongNo. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition16 December 1988 Doha, Qatar 1 1–0 2–0 1988 AFC Asian Cup211 December 1988 Doha, Qatar 3 2–0 3–0 1988 AFC Asian Cup3 23 May 1989 Seoul, South Korea 6 1–0 3–0 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification42–05 27 May 1989 Seoul, South Korea 7 2–0 3–0 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification63–075 June 1989 Singapore 8 1–0 3–0 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification814 August 1989 Los Angeles, United States 11 2–0 2–1 1989 Marlboro Cup916 October 1989 Singapore 14 1–0 1–0 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification1025 October 1989 Singapore 16 2–0 2–0 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification114 February 1990 Ta' Qali, Malta 18 1–0 2–3 Friendly1227 July 1990 Beijing, China 23 1–0 2–0 1990 Dynasty Cup13 25 September 1990 Beijing, China 29 1–0 7–0 1990 Asian Games142–0157–01623 October 1990 Seoul, South Korea 34 1–0 1–0 Friendly1728 October 1993 Doha, Qatar 40 2–0 3–0 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification1826 February 1994 Los Angeles, United States 42 2–0 2–2 Friendly194 May 1994 Changwon, South Korea 44 2–1 2–1 Friendly2011 June 1994 Duncanville, United States 46 2–0 3–0 Friendly2127 June 1994 Dallas, United States 49 1–3 2–3 1994 FIFA World Cup2213 September 1994 Seoul, South Korea 51 2–0 2–0 Friendly231 October 1994Hiroshima, Japan532–011–01994 Asian Games24 3–0 254–0266–0277–0289–02910–03011–0315 October 1994 Hiroshima, Japan 54 2–0 2–1 1994 Asian Games32 11 October 1994 Hiroshima, Japan 56 2–1 3–2 1994 Asian Games333–23431 October 1995 Seoul, South Korea 60 1–0 1–1 Friendly3519 March 1996 Dubai, United Arab Emirates 62 2–3 2–3 1996 Dubai Tournament36 30 April 1996 Tel Aviv, Israel 65 4–0 5–4 Friendly375–03823 November 1996Suwon, South Korea661–04–1Friendly39 2–0 404 December 1996 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 68 1–0 1–1 1996 AFC Asian Cup41 7 December 1996 Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 69 2–0 4–2 1996 AFC Asian Cup423–0431 April 1998 Seoul, South Korea 71 2–1 2–1 Friendly4422 April 1998 Belgrade, FR Yugoslavia 74 1–0 1–3 Friendly4527 May 1998 Seoul, South Korea 77 1–2 2–2 Friendly461 June 2001 Ulsan, South Korea 88 1–0 2–1 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup473 June 2001 Suwon, South Korea 89 1–0 1–0 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup48 20 March 2002 Cartagena, Spain 94 1–0 2–0 Friendly492–0504 June 2002 Busan, South Korea 98 1–0 2–0 2002 FIFA World Cup
Honours Player Pohang Steelers Korean FA Cup: 1996 Korean League Cup: 1993 Asian Club Championship: 1996–97, 1997–98
South Korea AFC Asian Cup runner-up: 1988 Asian Games bronze medal: 1990 Dynasty Cup: 1990
Individual Korean FA Best XI: 1988 Asian Games top goalscorer: 1994 K League All-Star: 1995 K League 1 Best XI: 1995 J.League All-Star: 1999 J1 League top goalscorer: 1999 J1 League Best XI: 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup Bronze Shoe: 2001 K League '90s All-Star Team: 2003 K League 30th Anniversary Best XI: 2013
Manager Busan IPark Korean FA Cup runner-up: 2010 Korean League Cup runner-up: 2009
Pohang Steelers K League 1: 2013 Korean FA Cup: 2012, 2013
FC Seoul K League 1: 2016 Korean FA Cup runner-up: 2016