South Korea’s military service system, how did Son Heung-min and others survive it?

In August 2018, the South Korean men's football team defeated Japan 2-1 in the Asian Games final to win the gold medal. Team captain Son Heung-min knelt down on one knee and cried bitterly after the game. The significance of this gold medal goes far beyond sports, because the Asian Games gold medal exempted Son Heung-min from compulsory military service for two years.

South Korea's military service system is a unique phenomenon in the world. Male citizens must serve for about 18 to 24 months, which is almost a fatal blow to professional football players. South Korean internationals such as Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in, Hwang Hee-chan, and Kim Min-jae have all been anxious about military service. The internationalization of Korean football has come to this day partly because players have found ways to avoid or postpone military service.

The origin of South Korea’s military service system

South Korea and North Korea have technically remained at war since their truce in 1953. This makes South Korea take a very strict view of the military service system. All Korean men aged 18 to 28 must serve for approximately 18 to 24 months, and evading military service is a criminal offense.

This system interrupts the lives of ordinary men for two years, and is a devastating blow to professional athletes. A 25-year-old football player returns from serving for 2 years at the age of 27 and has missed the prime period of his career. This cost has long led the Korean sports community to fight for exemption clauses.

Specific rules for immunity clauses

South Korean law stipulates that three categories of men are exempt from military service. The first is an Olympic medalist, the second is an Asian Games gold medalist and the third is health reasons.

Olympic medals including gold, silver, and bronze of any color are exempt from competition. In the Asian Games, only gold medals are exempted, not silver and bronze medals. This rule makes the Asian Games an exemption for Korean male athletes. In every Asian Games, the Korean men's football team goes all out and aims only for the gold medal, because the gold medal is an exemption ticket.

Son Heung-min’s immunity anxiety

Son Heung-min was already a core player for Tottenham in the Premier League when he was 28 years old in 2018. If he is forced to serve for 2 years, his career will basically be over. The 2018 Jakarta Asian Games became his only chance to be exempted from military service.

The final against Japan was 0-0 in 90 minutes, and South Korea won 2-1 in overtime. After the game, Son Heung-min knelt down and cried bitterly. At this moment, he not only won the gold medal, but also won the continuation of his career. After returning to the Premier League, Son Heung-min's form soared and he became Asia's first Premier League Golden Boot in 2019. All this is based on the 2018 Asian Games gold medal.

Training during military service

If Korean players really serve, most choose to train in the military football team. The South Korean army has a dedicated Sangju Sangmu Football Club, which recruits professional players during their service to form a team to participate in the K League.

This system allows service players to maintain basic training but the level is certainly lower than that of professional clubs. South Korean internationals Ki Sung-yong and Ki Sung-yong have all served in Sangmu. They can continue their careers after playing, but it will take some time to recover. This is a career interruption phenomenon unique to Korean players.

Lee Kang-in’s exemption pressure

Lee Kang-in, 22 years old in 2024, is the core of Paris Saint-Germain's midfield. His military service will enter a decision period from 2024 to 2026.

Lee Kang-in participated in the 2024 Asian Games but South Korea U22 failed to win the gold medal. This requires him to fight for exemption again at the 2026 Asian Games or the 2028 Olympic Games. If he fails both times he will be forced to serve until he turns 28. This kind of pressure is a huge psychological burden on a young player who is growing up at Paris Saint-Germain.

Gray operations of living overseas

Some South Korean players have tried to postpone military service by living overseas for extended periods of time. The law stipulates that those who continuously live overseas can apply for a deferment of military service. However, this operation cannot be permanently exempted, and mandatory recall can be postponed until the age of 35 at most.

Some Korean players choose to immigrate to other countries and give up their Korean citizenship. This operation completely solves the problem of military service but at the cost of losing qualifications for the Korean national team. That cost makes most players reluctant to take this route. Son Heung-min almost considered this path in 2018 but ultimately chose the Asian Games gold medal.

The strange existence of South Korea’s military football team

The South Korean Army's Sangmu Club is the only official military professional football club in the world. The club is composed of active military personnel and participates in the K League and K2 League.

The presence of Shangwu allows players during military service to maintain a sense of the game. Although this system design makes the service of Korean players relatively friendly, it still interrupts their careers for 2 years. Neither Japan nor China has similar professional teams for the military because the two countries do not have mandatory military service.

The profound impact of military service on Korean football

South Korea’s military service system presents Korean football with unique talent management challenges. Each national team coach must consider the military service schedules of core players. National team game arrangements for players such as Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae, and Lee Kang-in must avoid military service.

This system has instead strengthened the psychological endurance of Korean players. They have known since they were teenagers that there is a risk of a two-year forced break in their careers, and this pressure makes them cherish every game even more. The Korean men's football team's stable performance in the international arena in recent years is partly due to the psychological quality of growing up under such pressure.

Comparison between China and Japan

China does not have a compulsory military service system, and men enlist in the army voluntarily. There is also no compulsory military service in Japan. This difference makes the growth paths of professional players in China, Japan and South Korea completely different.

The pressure of military service on Korean players has become a competitive advantage. They train harder just for Olympic or Asian Games gold medals because it is about the continuation of their careers. Chinese and Japanese players do not have this pressure but lack this sense of urgency. This is one of the potential reasons for the rise of Korean football.

Future changes to the military service system

The South Korean Congress has discussed revising the military service system many times in recent years. One option is to extend exemptions to Asian Games silver and bronze medals and World Championship medals. Another option is to shorten the mandatory service period to 12 months.

However, these reforms have been slow to advance because they involve national defense interests and social equity. Ordinary Korean men believe that athlete immunity is a privilege in itself and oppose further expansion of the scope of immunity. This kind of social opposition makes it difficult for South Korea’s military service system to change in the short term. Korean players still have to grow up under the pressure of military service.

The inspiration left by Son Heung-min and others

South Korea’s military service system is essentially a mandatory stress test for players. Players who can pass this test have top psychological qualities. The international success of players such as Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in, Kim Min-jae, and Hwang Hee-chan is all based on this kind of pressure test.

The inspiration for Chinese football is not to institute a military service system, but to find a stress testing mechanism suitable for China. Only by allowing players to endure high-intensity psychological and professional pressure from a young age can they achieve stable output on the international stage. The success of Korean football is not only technical success but also psychological success. This is the core of what Chinese football needs to learn.