Lee Dong-gook (, ; born 29 April 1979) is a South Korean former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a striker. He is a record scorer in the

K League 1 The K League 1 (Hangul: K리그1) is the men's top professional football division of the South Korean football league system. The league is contested by twelve clubs. History The South Korean professional football league was founded in 1 ...

, and had brief spells in Europe with

Werder Bremen Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen (), Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen, Bremen (state), Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, they are be ...

and

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area. Until the early 1800s, the a ...

. He also played for the

South Korea national football team The South Korea national football team (; recognized as Korea Republic by FIFA) represents South Korea in men's international football and is governed by the Korea Football Association. South Korea has emerged as a major football power in Asia ...

at two

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...

s and two

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second oldest cont ...

Club career

Pohang Steelers

In 1998, Lee joined a

K League K League (Hangul: K리그) is South Korea's professional football league. It includes first division K League 1 and second division K League 2. History Until the 1970s, South Korean football operated two major football leagues, the National S ...

club

Pohang Steelers The Pohang Steelers (Hangul: 포항 스틸러스) are a South Korean professional football club based in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province that compete in the K League 1, the top flight of South Korean football. The Steelers were founded on 1 A ...

and started his professional career instead of entering university. Lee was named the Rookie of the Year after scoring eleven goals for Pohang in his first

season. He also helped Pohang win the

Asian Club Championship The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

in that year. In January 2001, he was sent on loan to a

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

club

, but he failed to settle in Bremen. He played only seven matches as a substitute during six months. He scored six goals during seven league matches in early 2006 when his performance was at its height. In April 2006, however, he tore the

cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and the atlanto-axial joint. In a fashion similar to the cords in a toy Jacob's la ...

s in his knee while playing in a league match that forced him out for six months, and was unable to play in the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

Enlistment in Gwangju Sangmu

In 1998, Lee's father offered a bribe to an employee of the

Military Manpower Administration The Military Manpower Administration () is one of a military organizations in South Korea and is run under the Ministry of National Defense. The headquarters are in Seo District, Daejeon. History *July 17, 1948: Assignment of military a ...

in order to dodge Lee's military service. The conspiracy ended in smoke, and was revealed by the prosecutor's office in October 2001. Lee and his father were criticised for their conspiracy, but the court only ordered the monetary penalty of his father. Lee wasn't punished at all, and even got an opportunity to exempt from military service by participating in the 2002 Asian Games. However, he falied to won a gold medal in the Asian Games despite the special treatment, and had to perform his obligation. In March 2003, he joined the military team

Gwangju Sangmu Gimcheon Sangmu FC (Hangul: 김천 상무 프로축구단; Hanja: 金泉尚武 프로蹴球團) is a South Korean professional association football club based in Gimcheon that competes in the K League 2, the second tier of South Korean football. ...

Middlesbrough

In January 2007, after being granted a work permit, Lee signed for

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

club

on an 18-month contract. On 24 February 2007, he made his debut, coming on as an 85th minute substitute for

Yakubu Yakubu is an English transliteration of a West African name and is a cognate of Jacob and James. Notable people with the name include: ;Given name * Yakubu (born 1982 as Yakubu Ayegbeni), Nigerian footballer * Yakubu (Gobir ruler), historical ruler ...

in the 2–1 win against

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

. On 29 August 2007, he scored his first goal against

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

in the 2007–08 Football League Cup. On 26 January 2008, he scored his second goal against

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they play in a blue and ...

in the 2007–08 FA Cup. However, he didn't score during 23 appearances in the Premier League and disappointed English fans. His contract expired at the end of the 2007–08 season and Middlesbrough decided not to extend his contract.

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors

Lee signed a contract with

Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma Seongnam () is the fourth largest city in South Korea's Gyeonggi Province after Suwon and the 10th largest city in the country. Its population is approximately one million. Seongnam is a satellite city of Seoul. It is largely a residential city ...

in 2008, but his difficult time was continued. He was transferred to

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors ( ko, 전북 현대 모터스) is a South Korean professional football club based in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province that competes in the K League 1, the top tier of South Korean football. Playing at the Jeonju World Cup S ...

in the 2009 transfer window. In the

2009 K League The 2009 K League was the 27th season of the K League. It was held from 7 March to 6 December 2009, and a total of 15 teams contested, including newly formed Gangwon FC. Teams General information Managerial changes Regular season League tab ...

, Lee became the top scorer by scoring 21 goals during 29 appearances, and Jeonbuk won their first-ever league trophy. He was named the Most Valuable Player after spending a successful season. In the 2011 K League, Lee recorded 16 goals and 15 assists during 29 appearances, leading Jeonbuk's second league title. He became the Most Valuable Player once again as well as the top assist provider. He also led Jeonbuk to the

2011 AFC Champions League Final The 2011 AFC Champions League Final was a football match which was played on Saturday, 5 November 2011, to determine the champion of the 2011 AFC Champions League. It was the final of the 30th edition of the top-level Asian club tournament organi ...

after scoring nine goals until the semi-finals. Jeonbuk lost the final to

Al Sadd Al Sadd Sports Club ( ar, نادي السد الرياضي, lit=Dam Sports Club) is a Qatari sports club based in the Al Sadd district of the city of Doha. It is best known for its association football team, which competes in th ...

after penalty shoot-out, but he was named the Most Valuable Player and the top scorer. On 3 March 2012, Lee became the K League's all-time leading scorer with 117 goals when he got two goals in the 2012 season opener against Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma. In 2013, Lee was involved in a bizarre incident in a K League match against

Seongnam FC Seongnam () is the fourth largest city in South Korea's Gyeonggi Province after Suwon and the 10th largest city in the country. Its population is approximately one million. Seongnam is a satellite city of Seoul. It is largely a residential cit ...

. While attempting to return the ball to Seongnam's goalkeeper after an injury stoppage, he accidentally struck it past him from 40 yards to level the score at 1–1. Jeonbuk goalkeeper Choi Eun-sung then sportingly scored an

own goal An own goal, also called a self goal, is where a player performs actions that result in them or their team scoring a goal on themselves, often resulting in a point for the opposing team, such as when a football player kicks a ball into their own ...

on purpose to restore Seongnam's lead. Lee won his third and fourth MVP award after adding K League titles in 2014 and 2015. On 15 March 2016, Lee scored his 30th AFC Champions League goal against Becamex Binh Duong and became the AFC Champions League's all-time top scorer. On 26 November 2016, Lee and Jeonbuk won the 2016 AFC Champions League after defeating

Al Ain Al Ain ( ar, ٱلْعَيْن, , ) is a city in the western side of Tawam (region), Tuwwam region and the seat of the administrative division of its namesake, Al-Ain Region, Abu Dhabi, Al Ain in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. ...

in the final. In the 2016 K League 1, Jeonbuk was deducted nine points for bribing two referees, and Korean fans protested that the punishment was too light. However, Lee ignored the corruption of his club, and didn't accept the result after losing the league title. On 2 June 2019, he scored his 200th career goal at

in a match against

Sangju Sangmu Gimcheon Sangmu FC (Hangul: 김천 상무 프로축구단; Hanja: 金泉尚武 프로蹴球團) is a South Korean professional association football club based in Gimcheon that competes in the K League 2, the second tier of South Korean football. ...

. On May 9 2020, Lee scored the only goal in a 1–0 win over

Suwon Samsung Bluewings ''(The Blue, White and Reds)''Tricolor'' , short name = SSB , image = , caption = , founded = , ground = Suwon World Cup Stadium , capacity = 44,031 , owner = Cheil Worldwide(Samsung's subsidiary) , chairma ...

, which was notable for being the first league match in the world during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. On 1 November 2020, Lee played virtually last game of his 23-year playing career, and got his retirement ceremony immediately after the game. This game, finished as a 2–0 victory over Daegu FC, was the last round of the 2020 K League 1, and Jeonbuk sealed their fourth successive title. On 8 November 2020, he played his last match as a substitute for eight minutes in the

2020 Korean FA Cup The 2020 Korean FA Cup, known as Hana Bank FA Cup due to sponsorship agreement with Hana Bank, was the 25th edition of the Korean FA Cup. Suwon Samsung Bluewings were the defending champions. As a change from the previous year, U-League teams did ...

final, and got his last trophy.

International career

In the

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the football world championship for men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. The country was chosen as the host nation by FIFA for the ...

, Lee was a member of the South Korean national team, playing a match against the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

as a substitute. After the World Cup, he led South Korea to the AFC Youth Championship title, becoming the tournament's MVP and top scorer. Lee also took part in the

2000 AFC Asian Cup The 2000 AFC Asian Cup was the 12th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international association football, football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held in Lebanon between 12 and 29 O ...

. He scored a hat-trick against

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, bringing South Korea's only victory in the group stage. He scored a golden goal in extra time of the quarter-final match against

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. He also scored a goal in the semi-finals against

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

, but South Korea lost this time. He became a top goalscorer with six goals after scoring the winning goal in the third place match against

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. In 2002, Lee was not chosen by

Guus Hiddink Guus Hiddink (; born 8 November 1946) is a Dutch former football manager and professional player. He enjoyed a long career playing as a midfielder in his native Netherlands. Retired as player in 1982, Hiddink went into management, leading both c ...

to represent South Korea in

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...

. Fans called him "Lazy Genius", because they felt that he did not fully use his potential. This is also because Hiddink emphasized strong stamina, great power, and agile speed, which are the categories that Lee struggles in, except power. He later admitted that he spent his days drinking and did not watch a single game that took place during the 2002 World Cup. Lee was coach

Dick Advocaat Dirk Nicolaas Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former football player and coach who is currently the head coach of Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag. Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a coach, including three sti ...

's first-choice selection at forward for Korea ahead of the

, but a knee injury suffered in a

match forced him to miss the tournament. On 1 November 2007, Lee was banned from the national team for twelve months after it was revealed that he, along with team captain

Lee Woon-jae Lee Woon-jae (; born 26 April 1973) is a South Korean former football goalkeeper. He was part of South Korea's 1994, 2002, 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cup campaigns. He was the only Asian player nominated for the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper of ...

, teammates

Kim Sang-sik Kim Sang-sik (born 17 December 1976) is a South Korean Association football, football manager and former player. He is currently the manager of K League 1 club Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. During his playing career, he played for South Korea natio ...

and Woo Sung-yong, went on a late night drinking spree with several female employees during the

2007 AFC Asian Cup The 2007 AFC Asian Cup was the 14th edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were held from 7 to 29 July 2007. For the first time in its h ...

, in which Korea received third place. Unlike the other members who were involved in this incident, because Lee played for Middlesbrough in England, the KFA could not ban him from his club team matches. Lee was selected as a reserve striker of the national team for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

. He came on as a substitute in the round of 16 against

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, and got a crucial chance made by

Park Ji-sung Park Ji-sung (; ; born 30 March 1981) is a South Korean former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Born in the South Korean capital Seoul, Park is the most successful Asian player in football history, having won 19 trophies in ...

. However, his shot lacked the power to cross the goal line, and South Korea lost the game after his mistake. He was denounced by South Korean fans, and was worried that his family would get hurt due to the criticisms about him. Lee played in qualifiers for

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...

but was not listed on the final teams for the tournaments.

Personal life

Lee married Lee Soo-jin, a runner up of

Miss Korea Miss Korea ( ko, 미스코리아) is a national beauty pageant in South Korea. Lee Seung-hyeon won the title on October 26, 2022. History The first Miss Korea competition took place in 1957 and was sponsored by the Korean newspaper Hankook I ...

1997, in December 2005. The couple have five children: twin daughters Lee Jae-si and Lee Jae-ah (born 14 August 2007), twin daughters Lee Seol-ah and Lee Soo-ah (born 18 July 2013) and son Lee Si-an, nicknamed Daebak (born 14 November 2014). Lee, along with his five children, has appeared on the Sunday variety show '' The Return of Superman'' (aired on KBS World TV) from 2015 to 2019. ''The Return of Superman'' shows famous Korean fathers taking care of their children for 48 hours without their wife. Lee is the first on the show to have five children to take care of. On December 23, 2022, Lee signed with Think Entertainment.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list South Korea's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Lee goal.''

Filmography

Television

Honours

Player

Pohang Steelers *

: 1997–98 *

Korean FA Cup The Korean FA Cup is a national football cup knockout competition of South Korea, held annually by the Korea Football Association (KFA). Before the FA Cup was established in 1996, two predecessor competitions named All Joseon Football Tournament ...

runner-up:

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors *

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October–November 2021 ...

*Korean FA Cup:

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

South Korea U20 * AFC Youth Championship: 1998 South Korea U23 *

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation (AGF) from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until t ...

bronze medal:

South Korea *

third place:

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

* EAFF Championship runner-up:

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

Individual * AFC Youth Championship Most Valuable Player: 1998 * AFC Youth Championship top goalscorer: 1998 * K League All-Star Game Most Valuable Player: 1998, 2001, 2003, 2012 * K League Rookie of the Year: 1998 *

top goalscorer:

Team of the Tournament:

* AFC Asian All Stars: 2000 * Korean FA Goal of the Year: 2004 * K League 1 top goalscorer:

* K League 1 Most Valuable Player:

K League FANtastic Player The K League 'FAN'tastic Player is an annual award given to the player who is judged to have been the best of the year in South Korea. The word 'Fan'tastic means that a fanstasic player is chosen by fans. The award has been presented since the 2009 ...

* K League 1 Best XI:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

* EAFF Championship top goalscorer:

* K League 1 top assist provider:

top goalscorer:

Most Valuable Player:

Entertainer

References

External links

*
Lee Dong-gook – National Team Stats
at KFA * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Dong-gook 1979 births Living people People from Pohang South Korean footballers Association football forwards South Korea international footballers 1998 FIFA World Cup players 2000 AFC Asian Cup players 2000 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2002 CONCACAF Gold Cup players 2004 AFC Asian Cup players 2007 AFC Asian Cup players 2010 FIFA World Cup players Asian Games medalists in football Footballers at the 1998 Asian Games Footballers at the 2002 Asian Games Asian Games bronze medalists for South Korea Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games Footballers at the 2000 Summer Olympics FIFA Century Club Pohang Steelers players SV Werder Bremen players Gimcheon Sangmu FC players Middlesbrough F.C. players Seongnam FC players Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors players K League 1 Most Valuable Player Award winners K League 1 players Bundesliga players Premier League players South Korean expatriate footballers Olympic footballers of South Korea South Korean expatriate sportspeople in Germany Expatriate footballers in Germany South Korean expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate footballers in England Sportspeople from North Gyeongsang Province

Club career

Pohang Steelers

Enlistment in Gwangju Sangmu

Middlesbrough

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors

International career

Personal life

Career statistics

Club

International

Filmography

Television

Honours

Player

Entertainer

See also

References

External links