Kim Tae-ho, a former star player, joined the U17 national team... Participation in off-season training in Thailand in preparation for the Asian Cup

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Tae-ho (17, Gyeongbuk Natural Science High School), who won the Future Star Award in football at the "Futures Star Awards" hosted by Star News last year, was selected for the U-17 national soccer team.

Kim Tae-ho was included in the list of South Korea's U-17 national team announced by the Korea Football Association on the 20th and participated in Thailand's off-season training. The U-17 national team, led by head coach Kim Hyun-joon, will hold off-season training in Robburi, Thailand, for the 2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-17 Asian Cup until the 1st of next month.

Kim Tae-ho is the only player in the Futures Star Awards last year who won the Future Star Award as a first-year player and a member of the general high school soccer team, not a professional affiliation.

"We are considered the best player in the current first-year high school generation, especially in non-professional teams," said Chung Jae-yoon, a scout for FC Seoul who served as a winner selection committee member. Technically, dribbling as well as passing capabilities are high. Although he is a freshman, he is receiving good reviews from all over the field to the extent that he played in his third year of high school."

Kim Hyun-ho's under-17 team, including Kim Tae-ho, will play three practice games against Indonesia (25th), Thailand (28th) and India (31st) during the training camp.

Initially, the U-17 national team was scheduled to participate in a four-nation friendly tournament in Saudi Arabia and adapt to the Asian Cup, but after searching for an alternative site due to instability in the Middle East, it trained in Thailand.

A total of 23 people, including Kim Tae-ho, were on the list. All 23 were born in 2009, of which 17 were from the youth team under the professional team and 6 were from the academy team, including Kim Tae-ho.

The U-17 team was part of Group C along with Yemen, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the 2026 AFC U-17 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia in May. South Korea will play the UAE on May 7, Vietnam on May 11, and Yemen on May 14.

The U-17 Asian Cup is divided into four groups of four teams, and eight teams ranked first and second in each group will determine the winner with a tournament. The top eight teams will qualify for the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar in November.

However, Qatar is the host of the U-17 World Cup for five years from 2025, and the World Cup finals have been confirmed regardless of the Asian Cup performance. If Qatar advances to the quarterfinals through its group stage performance, one of the best teams in the group stage will advance to the World Cup.

The Korea Football Association has been managing the national team of this age since the appointment of coach Kim Hyun-joon in July last year. In 2024, two years ago, he gained experience in international competitions through two overseas friendly matches (Italy in April and Spain in November) and Korea-China exchange matches in July.

In particular, in May last year, he participated in the "Bundesliga Dream Project" in Mainz and Hamburg, Germany, allowing him to experience the international stage early.

The "Bundesliga Dream Project" is a key program of the MOU signed between the KFA and the German Bundesliga, and players played practice games with Mainz and Hamburg youth teams, trained by local coaching staff, and experienced advanced soccer in person.

Since then, he has participated in a four-nation friendly tournament invited by the UEFA in June and a four-nation friendly tournament by the Chinese Football Association (CFA) in July, and has continued training in Korea since Kim Hyun-joon was appointed as an official coach, before starting training in Thailand this time.

The U-17 team will meet at Korea Football Park once more in April after training in Thailand before confirming its final roster for the Asian Cup.

- GK: Junyoung Jang (Pohang Steelers U18), Lee Seung-hwa (Bingo), Moon Yuno (Jeju SKU18)

- DF: Sung Min-soo (Pohang Steelers U18), Eun Ji-won (Bo In-go), Kwon Young-woong (FC Seoul U18), Choi Gun-min (Jeonbuk Hyundai U18), Park Sang-hyo (Yeongdeungpo Technical High School), Choi Jae-hyuk (Gangwon FC U18), Lim Yun-ho (Kim Cheon-sang-moo U18), and Park Ji-hoo (FC Seoul U18)

- MF: Choi Min-joon (Pohang Steelers U18), Han Seung-min (Jeonbuk Hyundai U18), Park Kyung-hoon, Lee In-woo (Suwon Samsung U18), Moon Ji-hwan (FC Seoul U18), Ahn Sun-hyun (Pohang Steelers U18), Kim Ji-ho, Koo Hoon-min (Daejeon Hana Citizen U18), Kim Tae-ho (Gyeongbuk Natural Science High School), Baek Geon (Shinpyeong High School)

- FW: Kim Ji-woo (Busan I'Park U18), Lee Yeon-woo (Boingo)

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*This content was translated by AI.