Man City has "abandoned plans to play a summer tour match" against South Korean side Jeonbuk Motors after the club was "embroiled in a referee bribery scandal," according to Stuart Brennan of the MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS. Man City has been talking about a "possible extension" to its trip to China, during which it will play ManU in Beijing on July 25 and Borussia Dortmund in Shenzhen three days later. The club has been "looking at the possibility" of finishing the tour in South Korea and Jeonbuk Motors had "asked the K League for permission to face them at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on July 30." But one of the Jeonbuk scouts "has since been accused of making payments to referees in a bid to influence games" (MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS, 6/20). YONHAP reported the K League office recently rejected Jeonbuk's request to have an exhibition match against Man City. If South Korean clubs "want to play a friendly with overseas clubs during the season, they must get approval from the league office" and the Korea FA. A K League official said, "In this kind of troubled atmosphere, we thought that pro football should first regain the trust of fans with a period of self-reflection. The league told Jeonbuk to refrain from scheduling festivities" (YONHAP, 6/20).
