June 28 (Reuters) - Hong Myung-bo resigned as head coach of South Korea on Sunday following the country's group-stage exit from the World Cup.
Hong made the announcement at the team's training camp in Guadalajara after results on Saturday meant the Koreans would not advance to the last 32 as one of the eight third-placed finishers in the group phase.
"I would like to sincerely apologise to the citizens who have loved Korean football and always supported the national team," Hong said.
"Today, I wish to step down as head coach of the South Korean national football team. Accepting this role was never an easy decision for me.
"However, once I made that decision, I did not consider any other reasons. I believed my only task was to fulfil the responsibility entrusted to me to the end."
Hong was appointed in July 2024 as the long-term replacement for Juergen Klinsmann and steered the country to an 11th successive World Cup appearance.
Expectations were high that a Korean squad featuring Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in and Kim Min-jae would advance to the knockout rounds from a group featuring co-hosts Mexico, Czech Republic and South Africa.
The Koreans started with a 2-1 win over the Czechs but losses to Mexico and South Africa left them needing results in other groups to go their way to progress to the next phase of the competition.
"I failed to deliver the results the public expected," said Hong. "The responsibility lies entirely with me."
(Reporting by Michael Church, Editing by Toby Davis)
