'Even after elimination from the group stage,' Lee Kang-in's popularity remains solid, topping Star Ranking for 16 consecutive weeks... Kim Do-young, KBO home run leader, takes second place

*This content was translated by AI.

Lee Kang-in (25, Paris Saint-Germain) maintained his solid popularity despite the disappointing result of being eliminated from the World Cup group stage.

In the 53rd Star Ranking Star Sports men's poll, held from 3:01 a.m. on the 25th of last month until 3 p.m. on the 2nd, Lee Kang-in received 14,411 votes to secure first place.

Lee Kang-in, who first took the top spot in the 38th poll, has held the number one position in this category for an impressive 16 consecutive weeks.

Although South Korean football was eliminated from the 2026 FIFA World Cup with a record of one win and two losses, sparking public outrage upon their return, Lee Kang-in's status as an undisputed ace remained completely unshaken.

There were no changes in positions from second to fifth. Kim Do-young (23, KIA Tigers), who overcame injuries this season in the Korea Professional Baseball League (KBO) and is showing an incredible home run pace, took second place with 7,656 votes. Heo Woong (33), who led Busan KCC to a championship victory in the 2025-2026 professional basketball season, secured third place with 4,458 votes.

Following him, Son Heung-min (34, LAFC), who captained the South Korean national football team, took fourth place with 2,305 votes, while Lee Jung-hoo (28, San Francisco Giants) of Major League Baseball (MLB), who is displaying hot hitting form, held fifth place with 1,250 votes.

The Star Ranking is a system where fans directly vote on the StarNews website to determine the ranking of their favorite stars. Selected stars receive various special benefits based on the voting results.

Recently, the Star Ranking significantly expanded its candidate pool, fueling a battle of firepower among fans. Starting from the 49th poll, five new candidates were added: Oh Hyun-kyu (Besiktas), Cho Gue-sung (Midtjylland), and Lee Seung-woo (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors) in football; Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha Eagles) and Koo Ja-wook (Samsung Lions) in baseball.

With this addition, a total of 20 stars are now engaged in fierce competition, including existing candidates Lee Kang-in, Son Heung-min, Hwang Hee-chan, Kim Min-jae, Yang Min-hyuk (all football); Kim Do-young, Yang Hyeon-jong, Ryu Hyun-jin, Kim Ha-seong, Lee Jung-hoo, and Kim Hye-seong (all baseball); Heo Woong and Heo Hun (both basketball); Heo Su-bong (volleyball); and Woo Sang-hyuk (track and field), alongside the new candidates.

Meanwhile, the 54th Star Ranking men's sports poll will run for one week from 3:01 p.m. on the 2nd until 3 p.m. on July 9.

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*This content was translated by AI.