The five members of the national men's football team caught in a rift controversy announced Thursday they have put their differences behind them and are now ready to lead a new generation of players by example. Son Heung-min, Lee Jae-sung, Hwang Hee-chan, Hwang In-beom and Kim Min-jae issued a joint statement through the Korea Football Association (KFA) during their training camp in Doha, where the national team has been training since Tuesday to prepare for two upcoming friendly matches. The Taegeuk Warriors will face Saudi Arabia on Friday in Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Al Rayyan, just west of Doha, and Qatar next Tuesday at Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha. These five players have been called up for the national team amid rumors of friction in the locker room. Son, the longtime captain, and Lee are part of the leadership group at age 34. The two Hwangs and Kim, colloquially called the "1996 group" for their birth year, reportedly offered to retire from international play following Korea's friendly against Uzbekistan on Oct. 5 in apparent frustration with the older players. Some t

The men's national football team will try to turn the page from a recent rift as they take on Saudi Arabia this week in the first of two friendly matches in Qatar. With the temporary head coach Robert Moreno in charge, world No. 32 Korea will play 55th-ranked Saudi Arabia at 5:30 p.m. Friday (11:30 p.m. Friday in Korea) at Jassim bin Hamad Stadium in Al Rayyan, just west of Doha. Korea will next face Qatar in Doha on Tuesday. The Saudi Arabia match will be Korea's first since their 2-0 win over Uzbekistan on Oct. 6. In that game's immediate aftermath, three players, Hwang In-beom, Hwang Hee-chan and Kim Min-jae, reportedly threatened to retire from international play because they had been frustrated with the team's leadership group, led by longtime captain Son Heung-min. After weeks of rumors on their friction, the five players issued a joint statement Thursday, saying they had put their differences behind them, and they were now ready to pursue their common goal of rewarding loyal fans with good performances. The Korea Football Association (KFA) had scheduled the two matches in November

Korea lost to Australia 7-8 in its first game of a regional baseball tournament in Tokyo on Thursday as its comeback effort went for naught. Korea rallied from a 4-0 deficit to take a 6-4 lead, only to give up four runs over the final two innings in the teams' first game of the Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) at Tokyo Dome. This is the third edition of the tournament, which also features the host country Japan and Taiwan. Japan won the first two editions, with Korea finishing as the runner-up on both occasions. The APBC is for players aged 24 years and younger or those with no more than three years of professional experience. Teams can each take up to three players who are between 24 and 29 years old. Korea, made up mostly of young Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) stars, will next face Japan at 7 p.m. Friday and then Taiwan at 7 p.m. Saturday. After round-robin play, the two worst teams will square off in the third-place game at 11 a.m. Sunday, and the top two nations will clash in the final at 7 p.m. Sunday. Australia opened the scoring in the top of the first inning, cou

The SSG Landers announced their signing of former major league pitcher Lyon Richardson on Thursday. The Landers said Richardson, 26, agreed to a one-year contract worth $1 million, which includes a signing bonus of $100,000. The American right-hander will join the returning ace Pedro Avila at the top of the Landers' rotation next season. Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) clubs are each allowed to sign a maximum two foreign pitchers. They may also sign one Asian quota player each, with most teams filling that spot with a pitcher. Richardson was a second-round pick by the Cincinnati Reds at the 2018 Major League Baseball (MLB) draft. He made his MLB debut with the Reds in 2023 and went on to appear in 41 games for them until June this year, when he was designated for assignment and elected free agency. Richardson then signed with the eventual World Series champions Milwaukee Brewers and pitched in one game for them. Over his MLB career, Richardson had a 6.48 ERA in 58 1/3 innings with 47 strikeouts against 40 walks. Richardson pitched in 40 games in Triple-A this year, going 4-4 with a 4.44

Manchester United dismissed manager Michael Carrick on Thursday after a prolonged winless Premier League run culminated in a 4-4 draw against Aston Villa at Old Trafford last weekend, leaving the struggling team mired in the relegation zone. United have won only three of their 15 matches in all competitions under Carrick this season — including one league victory — leaving them 18th in the table on eight points after 10 games, one point from the bottom. "After a disappointing start to the season, the club has come to the extremely difficult conclusion that a change is necessary in order to achieve our ambitions," United said in a statement on their website. Carrick came under mounting pressure after a 3-0 home loss to Bournemouth and the former United midfielder carried the air of someone awaiting the inevitable after the defeat when fans chanted his name but booed the players off the pitch. He had dropped captain Bruno Fernandes to the bench against Bournemouth and did not bring him on even when United were desperate for inspiration in midfield, but the struggling club gave Carrick

MANILA, Philippines– The 2026-27 NBA season continued Thursday, November 12 (November 11 in the US), with San Antonio Spurs extending their winning streak to 10 games, Los Angeles Lakers claiming their seventh straight victory and Boston Celtics making it five in a row. Indiana Pacers beat Washington Wizards, 114-101 Pascal Siakam scored 28 points, making

PORTLAND, Oregon— Damian Lillard scored 25 points and the Portland Trail Blazers snapped a two-game skid with a 123-103 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA on Tuesday night. Deni Avdija added 24 points, eight assists and six rebounds for the Blazers in the first of back-to-back home games against Oklahoma City. READ:

HOUSTON— Kevin Durant scored 20 points, Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson added 19 and the Houston Rockets snapped Golden State’s eight-game winning streak with a 115-108 victory on Wednesday night. The Warriors played most of the game without Stephen Curry after the superstar left in the first quarter with right abdominal soreness and didn’t return.

SALT LAKE CITY— Franz Wagner matched a career high with 38 points and had eight rebounds to lead the Orlando Magic to a 123-108 victory over Utah  in the NBA on Wednesday night, the 10th straight loss for the Jazz. Desmond Bane had 25 points while Anthony Black chipped in 22 points and eight assists

CHICAGO — Victor Wembanyama scored 32 points, Dylan Harper had 18 points, 10 assists and four steals and the San Antonio Spurs won their 10th straight game, overcoming a 22-point deficit to beat the Chicago Bulls 124-119 in the NBA on Wednesday night. The Bulls have lost eight in a row to fall to 1-9.

MANILA, Philippines — The Choco Mucho Flying Titans ended their seven-game losing streak against the Creamline Cool Smashers after prevailing in a grueling five-set clash, 23-25, 25-13, 25-23, 22-25, 15-13, in the 2026-27 Premier Volleyball League (PVL) All-Filipino Conference-Siklab Series on Thursday night at the jam-packed Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao, Quezon City. This marks the second win of the Flying Titans against the Cool Smashers since the beginning of their rivalry in 2019. Creamline holds a 19-2 record over the Flying Titans. The last time that Choco Mucho won over Creamline was at the semifinals of the 2024 All-Filipino Conference in April 2024. On Thursday, Choco Mucho was led by Sisi Rondina who scored 20 points. Caitlin Viray and Jewel Encarnacion added 11 and 10 points, respectively. Deanna Wong finished with 15 excellent sets for Choco Mucho. Creamline’s decorated playmaker Jia De Guzman, on the other hand, made 22 excellent sets in the match. Jema Galanza and Bernadeth Pons scored 16 and 14 points while Tots Carlos and Pangs Panaga added 13 and 10 points for Creamline. Choco Mucho improved to a 4-3 win-loss record, while Creamline fell to 4-2.

NEW ORLEANS— Egor Demin returned from a six-game injury absence to score 22 points, Michael Porter Jr. also scored 22, and the Brooklyn Nets beat New Orleans 145-111 in the NBA on Wednesday night, handing the Pelicans their fourth consecutive loss. Julius Randle had 17 while Noah Clowney and Moritz Wagner added 16 each for