A Belgian professional football club recently purchased by a South Korean marketing firm is about to sign its first player from the Asian country, officials said Friday.
A.F.C. Tubize, a second-division Belgian team, will soon hold a physical for Hwang Jin-sung, a free-agent midfielder who played for Pohang Steelers in South Korea's K League Classic last season.
Earlier this month, Sportizen, a Seoul-based sports marketing company, announced its acquisition of A.F.C. Tubize and claimed it was the first South Korean firm to take over a European pro football club.
"Hwang is over in Belgium and is about to undergo his physical," an official from Sportizen said, adding that should the player pass the test, a deal will soon be reached.
Hwang, 30, made his professional debut with Pohang in 2003 and spent his entire 11-year career with the same club. He had knee surgery last fall and Pohang declined to re-sign him when Hwang became a free agent before this season.
Sources said Hwang, who had six goals in 22 matches in 2013, also drew interest from Middle Eastern and Chinese clubs, before settling on A.F.C. Tubize.
Upon announcing its takeover, Sportizen said it planned to acquire some South Korean players before the summer transfer window in European football closes at the end of August.
Located in the city of Tubize, about 25 kilometers south of the Belgian capital of Brussels, A.F.C Tubize was founded in 1989 when two clubs, FC Tubize and Amis Reunis de Tubize, merged. The club has mostly played in the second division and last played in the first division in the 2008-2009 season. (Yonhap)