The great history of Korean soccer has unfortunately been thwarted. Lee Kang-in (24, Paris Saint-Germain) was not recognized as the first Korean member to win the UEFA Champions League (UCL).

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) defeated Inter Milan 5-0 in the 2024-2025 season UCL final held at the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany, on the 1st (Korean time).

With this victory, PSG achieved its dream of winning the big ears (UCL trophy) for the first time in 55 years since its founding in 1970. Additionally, they completed a historic 'quadruple' after winning Ligue 1, the Trophée des Champions, and the Coupe de France, marking their best season.

It was a one-sided match. PSG took the lead with Achraf Hakimi's opening goal from a perfect assist by Désiré Duguel just 12 minutes after the start. Furthermore, in the 20th minute of the first half, a deflected shot from Duguel after receiving a pass from Dembélé led to an additional goal.

There was no turnaround in the second half either. Rather, PSG extended their lead to 5 goals with consecutive goals from Duguel, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Senny Maïlou, overwhelming Inter. Lee Kang-in remained on the bench until the end, but the match concluded with PSG's historic 5-0 victory.

However, Lee Kang-in did not participate. He was named to the substitute list but remained on the bench. Coach Luis Enrique utilized all five of his substitution cards but opted for the promising prospect Maïlou born in 2006 instead of Lee Kang-in. This repeated the pattern of being completely sidelined in the starting competition.

Nevertheless, Lee Kang-in was part of PSG's championship as a proud member. Although he did not play much in this season's UCL tournament, he contributed by appearing in 11 matches, including the group stage. He enjoyed the glory of victory alongside his teammates. After receiving his winner's medal from Aleksander Čeferin, the UEFA president, Lee Kang-in celebrated on the podium right next to captain Marquinhos.

With this victory, Lee Kang-in became the second player in the history of Korean soccer to experience UCL glory. After Park Ji-sung won the UCL while wearing a Manchester United jersey in the 2007-2008 season, the lineage continued for the first time in 17 years. Although Son Heung-min led Tottenham to the finals in the 2018-2019 season, they lost to Liverpool, finishing as runners-up.

Thus, Korea remains the only Asian country to have produced a UCL-winning player. If Mehdi Taremi's Inter had defeated PSG, Iran could have followed in Korea's footsteps, but fortunes collided for Lee Kang-in. He is the second Korean player in history to wear a UCL winner's medal and the first Asian player to experience a treble.

However, Lee Kang-in was not recognized as an official winner under UEFA standards. This is because UEFA only recognizes players who participated directly in the final as winners. Korea was also absent from the list of countries producing winning players.

Like Lee Kang-in, Park Ji-sung also obtained a UCL winner's medal but did not feature in the final. He made significant contributions in the 2007-2008 UCL tournament, but was shockingly excluded from the actual final. Later, manager Alex Ferguson said excluding Park Ji-sung was the most regrettable decision of his life.

According to UEFA's website, "Hakimi became the first Moroccan player to play in the UCL final in 2017 and the first Moroccan to score in a European competition final. Willian Pacho became the first Ecuadorian to participate in a winning team," and noted, "Lee Kang-in missed becoming the first Korean player to win the final by not being used as a substitute in Munich."

According to UEFA, 54 countries have produced UCL winners to date. A total of 633 players have participated in the European Cup (the predecessor of UCL) or the UCL final to win the title, with Spain boasting the most winners at 80.

[Photo] UCL, PSG, Lee Kang-in, Le Parisien social media.

[OSEN]