Directly rebuts 'excessive management controversy,' Paju Frontier FC Manager Hwang Bo-gwan: "Cannot agree with definitive assessment of 6 billion won... Will correct the facts"

*This content was translated by AI.

A newly established K League 2 club has directly rebutted recent controversies over the excessive management of city support funds. Paju Frontier FC stated that the actual usable city support budget is approximately 495 million won, and that they are operating transparently by covering their insufficient finances with 1.2 billion won in self-generated revenue.

Hwang Bo-gwan, Manager of Paju Frontier FC, released an official statement titled "Message to Fans and Citizens of Paju" on the 6th, detailing the club's actual budget structure and operational status.

Manager Hwang began by stating, "We wish to accurately explain the actual budget structure and operational situation regarding some media outlets' mention of the 6 billion won budget supported by Paju City and their characterization of the club's management as 'excessive management.'"

According to the club's explanation, while the support budget allocated by Paju City is 6 billion won, this entire amount is not used for the club's annual operating expenses. It includes 500 million won for the purchase of two club buses that have not yet been purchased and remain with the city, as well as a 500 million won membership fee and a 0.5 billion won annual fee to the Korea Professional Football League. Excluding these, the city support funds actually available for the club's operation in one season amount to 495 million won. Manager Hwang pointed out that "evaluating it as excessive management by viewing the entire 6 billion won as operating expenses differs from the actual budget structure."

He emphasized that insufficient resources are being covered by the club's self-generated revenue. Paju set its self-generated revenue target for this season at 1 billion won, but as of September 30, it secured 1.2 billion won through sponsorship recruitment and ticket sales, achieving 120% of the target.

The secured self-generated revenue was invested in improving the player environment. The club additionally bore approximately 250 million to 300 million won from its self-generated revenue to support nutritional management for the operation of the National Football Center (NFC) cafeteria, which was insufficient with only the city-allocated budget. Additionally, until the purchase of buses, the club is self-funding vehicle rental costs for transportation at approximately 15 million won per month and approximately 180 million won annually.

They also drew a clear line regarding concerns over accounting incidents such as embezzlement of funds, stating that they operate a strict multi-stage internal control system. The club's accounting officer, Gyeong Yeong-gi-hoek (Team Lead), and management cross-check the book balance with the actual bank account balance daily. They completed their explanation along with relevant documents in September regarding the points raised in Paju City's subsidy audit, which was conducted for approximately three weeks. Manager Hwang stated that while they will humbly accept and supplement any administrative procedural deficiencies, these must be clearly distinguished from actual fund management.

Furthermore, he indicated a resolve to firmly deal with defamation that does not align with the facts. Manager Hwang stated, "It is difficult to agree with expressions that definitively characterize the entire club's management as 'excessive management' without verification," and added, "We will actively correct parts that differ from the facts through relevant documents and continue responsible responses such as requests for corrections."

Despite financial disadvantages, the player team continues its challenge. Under the leadership of Spanish-born Manager Gerard, they achieved developmental results such as goalkeeper Kim Min-seung's selection for the Asian Games national team and Lee Chan-ho's advancement to the Portuguese league. Currently, after completing Round 27, they are ranked 12th due to being behind in goals scored, but they have not given up hope of advancing to the playoffs.

Manager Hwang added, "We will fight without giving up until the very last moment, including the home game against Busan IPark to be held at Paju Stadium on the 10th," and stated, "We will specifically explain the circumstances of the current resource shortage and our efforts to resolve it through a follow-up statement."

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*This content was translated by AI.