"Changing Clothes in Restrooms or Tents? It Would Be a Scandal Abroad"… Women's Soccer Player Ji So-yeon Speaks Out Harshly

"The Fundamental Problem Is the Lack of Interest in Women's Soccer"

Ji So-yeon (33, Seattle Reign), the leading figure in South Korean women's soccer, voiced criticism about the poor conditions of women's soccer tournaments.

In an interview with Yonhap News on the 11th, Ji So-yeon said, "Our players do not have locker rooms, but they naturally change clothes in restrooms or under tents," adding, "In foreign countries, 'changing under tents' like we do would cause an uproar, but at some point, our players have come to accept it without any concern."

Leading female soccer player Ji So-yeon (Seattle Reign). Photo by Yonhap News

Ji So-yeon was referring to the National Women's Soccer Championship held in August. This tournament, with 61 teams participating nationwide, is the largest women's soccer competition in South Korea. However, this year, there were no changing rooms or locker rooms, forcing players to change clothes without any privacy in restrooms or under tents. Initially, restrooms were used as changing rooms, but as lines grew longer, exhausted players moved to tents. In response, the International Federation of Professional Footballers (FIFPro) also highlighted the poor conditions in South Korea on August 9 with an article titled "Female players at the largest tournament in the heatwave have to change clothes in public."

Ji So-yeon also emphasized, "In our country, many say women's soccer is a 'business that won't succeed,' but I want to change that perception to a 'business worth trying.'" She said, "The fundamental problem is that there is too little interest in women's soccer. If there is something we need to work on, it starts with changing this perception itself."

Meanwhile, the Korea Professional Footballers' Association (KPFA), chaired by Ji So-yeon, plans to hold its own awards ceremony as part of efforts to improve the poor conditions of female players. The KPFA will select the Best 11 and Most Valuable Player (MVP) at the 2024 WK League awards ceremony, scheduled for 1 p.m. on the 14th at the Novella Hall of The Riverside Hotel in Gangnam-gu.

Ji So-yeon made her professional debut in 2011 at age 18 with Kobe Leonessa in Japan. In 2014, she became the first Korean female player to join the England Women's Super League (WSL). Playing for Chelsea Women FC for eight seasons, she won the WSL title six times and the FA Cup four times. In May 2022, Ji So-yeon made headlines by transferring to Suwon FC in the domestic WK League. She has scored 69 goals in 154 A-match appearances, holding the record for most appearances and goals among all Korean male and female national team players. This year, she joined Seattle Reign FC in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL), considered one of the world's top leagues.