Cha Bum-kun


Cha Bum-kun is a South Korean former football manager and player. A forward, he was nicknamed Tscha Bum or "Cha Boom" in Germany because of his name and thunderous ball striking ability. He showed explosive pace and powerful shots. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Asian footballers of all time.
In 1972, Cha had been capped for the football team|South Korea national team] as the youngest player of the time at the age of 18. He is the youngest player to ever reach 100 international caps in the world at 24 years and 35 days, and the all-time leading goalscorer of the South Korean national team with 58 goals. After dominating Asian competitions including the 1978 Asian Games|1978 Asian Games], he left for West Germany and played for Eintracht Frankfurt and Bayer Leverkusen. He scored a total of 121 goals in two Bundesliga clubs, and won the UEFA Cup with each team.
After his retirement, he opened a football academy to develop youth players in South Korea, and managed the national team for the 1998 [FIFA World Cup].

Early life

Cha was born in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi. He originally joined Yeongdo Middle School to learn football, but the school's football club was dissolved as soon as he joined there. He started his football career by transferring to Kyungshin Middle School after playing field hockey for Yeongdo for one and a half years. In his high school days, he tried to leave school due to older students' violence, but continued to play football with the manager Chang Woon-soo's help. He became a notable player of Kyungshin High School, and was selected for the South Korean under-20 team in 1970.

Club career

Career in South Korea

Cha entered Korea University in 1972, and won the Korean National Championship in 1974, the predecessor of the Korean FA Cup. After his graduation, he started his senior career with Korea Trust Bank FC in 1976. He led his team to the title and was named the best player in the spring season of the Korean Semi-professional League. In October 1976, he joined Air Force FC to serve his mandatory military service. Cha originally had a plan to enlist in the Navy FC, but the ROK Air Force persuaded him that it would move his discharge up by six months.

Darmstadt 98

While playing for the national team in the 1978 Korea Cup, Cha attracted the attention of an Eintracht Frankfurt coach, who had received an invitation to serve as an scout/observer at that tournament. In November 1978, Schulte sent a letter to the KFA, suggesting Cha's tryout in West Germany, who would be discharged from the ROK Air Force in January 1979. Cha had taken time off to leave for Frankfurt after the 1978 Asian Games in December and succeeded to contract with another Bundesliga club Darmstadt 98 by signing a six-month deal. However, he spent just less than a month in Darmstadt. The ROK Air Force didn't follow the contract with Cha, and ordered his return. After his debut match against VfL Bochum on 30 December, Cha returned to South Korea due to his complicated issue about military service on 5 January. He eventually spent the remainder of the duration of his military service until 31 May, and so could not play for Darmstadt.

Eintracht Frankfurt

After being discharged from the military service completely, Cha still wanted to play in Bundesliga, and joined Eintracht Frankfurt at age 26 in July 1979. He scored in three consecutive games from third to fifth matchday of the Bundesliga, making an immediate impact early in his new club. After the first half of his first season in Germany, he was classified as world class in the. He was also acclaimed by showing great performances helping Eintracht to win its first-ever UEFA Cup title. He was evaluated as the "unstoppable player" by Sir Alex Ferguson, and "one of the best attackers in the world" by Lothar Matthäus. In addition to a UEFA Cup title, he was named along with Karl-Heinz Rummenigge and Kevin Keegan in the Bundesliga Team of the Season by kicker. On 23 August 1980, Cha's spine had been cracked by Jürgen Gelsdorf, who had tackled him from behind, but came back to the stadium after a month. Afterwards, he scored six goals in six matches of the 1980–81 DFB-Pokal, leading Eintracht to the title. He became Eintracht's top goalscorer for three consecutive seasons.

Bayer Leverkusen

However, Cha transferred to Bayer Leverkusen due to a financial difficulty of Frankfurt in 1983. In the 1985–86 Bundesliga, he scored his most goals in a single Bundesliga season with 17 goals, and Leverkusen qualified for the UEFA Cup for the first time as the sixth-placed team. The magazine kicker once again selected him for the Team of the Season, and the gave him the Player of the Season award. In the 1988 UEFA Cup final, he scored a dramatic equaliser against Espanyol to tie the game 3–3. Leverkusen eventually went on to win the game on penalties, holding its first European title.
Cha retired in 1989 after playing 308 Bundesliga games as a fair player. During his Bundesliga career, he scored 98 goals without a penalty, and received only one yellow card. On 31 October 1987, he scored his 93rd Bundesliga goal, becoming the top foreign goalscorer by surpassing Willi Lippens. His scoring record wasn't broken for eleven years until Stéphane Chapuisat scored more goals than him. As of 2024, Cha is ranked ninth along with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the Bundesliga's foreign goalscorer standings.

International career

Cha generally played the Bundesliga games as a striker, but he had originally been a winger in South Korea. He became a South Korean under-20 international in 1970, and took part in the AFC Youth Championship in AFC Youth Championship|1971] and 1972. In the 1972 AFC Asian Cup, he made his senior international debut against Iraq, and scored his first international goal against Khmer Republic. He was named in the Korean FA Best XI for seven consecutive years, and was selected as the Korean FA Player of the Year in 1973.
Cha usually played for the national team in the Korea Cup, Merdeka Tournament and King's Cup (Thailand), which were annually contested between Asian nations and the invited clubs at the time. He won a total of ten trophies and also left memorable games in three competitions. In the 1975 Merdeka Tournament, he scored his first international hat-trick against Japan. In the 1976 Korea Cup, he scored a hat-trick against Malaysia during five minutes from 83rd to 88th minute, leading South Korea to a dramatic 4–4 draw.
In the 1978 [FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC and OFC)|1978 FIFA World Cup qualification], he played all of South Korea's twelve matches, and recorded five goals and two assists, although his knee got a boil during the competition. However, South Korea failed to qualify for the World Cup by finishing the qualification as runners-up despite his struggle.
In the 1978 Asian Games, he scored two goals and provided two assists, contributing to team's gold medal. However, he showed lethargic plays to prepare tryouts for Bundesliga clubs, and received criticisms. After the 1978 Asian Games, he left for the Bundesliga and didn't play for South Korea. His last international tournament was the 1986 FIFA World Cup, South Korea's first World Cup since 1954. He showed exemplary performance in intensive checks by opponents, but failed to prevent South Korea's elimination in the group stage.

Managerial career

Cha moved into management with K League side Hyundai Horang-i, coaching them from 1991–94. His next appointment in January 1997 was Korean national team coach and he led the nation to the 1998 FIFA World Cup; however, a disastrous 5–0 defeat at the hands of the Netherlands in Korea's second group game got Cha fired. He later blamed the KFA for the bad performance, citing lack of bonuses and alleging pro soccer games in Korea were fixed. The association promptly slapped a five-year ban on him and he soon left the country with his wife.
After an 18-month spell coaching Shenzhen Ping'an in China, Cha took up a commentator position with MBC in Korea. He returned to coaching in late 2003 when offered the Suwon Samsung Bluewings position. Cha achieved immediate success with Suwon by lifting the 2004 K League championship, an achievement he ranked as even better than the UEFA Cup he won as a player in 1988. He later resigned in June 2010 as Suwon manager.

Personal life

Cha is a devout Christian and said the faith is one of his three biggest values along with family and football.
Cha's second child, Cha Du-ri, also played for the South Korean national team and Bundesliga clubs, among them Eintracht, following in his father's footsteps.
In November 2019, Cha received the Cross of Merit from the German government.

Career statistics

Club

International

The KFA is showing the list of Cha's 136 international appearances in its official website. The RSSSF is also claiming 136 appearances about Cha's international career, but its details have some discrepancies. FIFA registered him with 130 appearances in the FIFA Century Club by excluding six matches in the Summer Olympics qualification.


  • CompetitionAppsGoals
    Friendlies102
    Minor competitions7644
    Asian Games122
    AFC Asian Cup qualification40
    AFC Asian Cup51
    Summer Olympics qualification62
    FIFA World Cup qualification207
    FIFA World Cup30
    Total13658

    • No.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition
    110 May 1972National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand23–04–11972 AFC Asian Cup
    219 July 1972Perak Stadium, Ipoh, Malaysia82–04–11972 Merdeka Tournament
    323 July 1972Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia92–02–01972 Merdeka Tournament
    429 July 1972Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia112–02–11972 Merdeka Tournament
    520 September 1972Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea133–03–01972 Korea Cup
    622 November 1972National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand211–11–11972 King's Cup
    719 May 1973Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea242–04–01974 FIFA [World Cup qualification (AFC and OFC)|1974 FIFA World Cup qualification]
    828 May 1973Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea281–01–01974 FIFA World Cup qualification
    922 September 1973Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea302–06–01973 Korea Cup
    1022 September 1973Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea304–06–01973 Korea Cup
    1130 September 1973Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea331–02–01973 Korea Cup
    1216 December 1973National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand374–05–01973 King's Cup
    1322 December 1973National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand392–02–01973 King's Cup
    1425 December 1973National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand402–02–11973 King's Cup
    1518 May 1974Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea432–03–01974 Korea Cup
    1625 December 1974Hong Kong542–03–1Hong Kong Tournament
    1729 July 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia582–03–11975 Merdeka Tournament
    187 August 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia613–06–01975 Merdeka Tournament
    199 August 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia621–03–11975 Merdeka Tournament
    209 August 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia622–13–11975 Merdeka Tournament
    219 August 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia623–13–11975 Merdeka Tournament
    2211 August 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia631–05–11975 Merdeka Tournament
    2315 August 1975Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia644–04–01975 Merdeka Tournament
    2421 December 1975National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand681–03–11975 King's Cup
    2521 December 1975National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand682–03–11975 King's Cup
    266 March 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea731–03–0Football at the [1976 Summer Olympics – Men's Asian Qualifiers|1976 Summer Olympics qualification]
    2727 March 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea752–12–21976 Summer Olympics qualification
    2810 August 1976Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia791–08–0
    2910 August 1976Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia795–08–0
    3010 August 1976Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia798–08–0
    3115 August 1976Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia812–22–21976 Merdeka Tournament
    3211 September 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea842–44–41976 Korea Cup
    3311 September 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea843–44–41976 Korea Cup
    3411 September 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea844–44–41976 Korea Cup
    3513 September 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea854–04–01976 Korea Cup
    3617 September 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea861–07–01976 Korea Cup
    3717 September 1976Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea867–07–01976 Korea Cup
    3822 December 1976National Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand911–11–11976 King's Cup
    3914 February 1977Singapore921–04–0Friendly
    4018 February 1977Al Ahli Stadium, Manama, Bahrain932–04–1Friendly
    4120 March 1977Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea961–03–11978 FIFA World Cup qualification
    423 April 1977Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea981–01–01978 FIFA World Cup qualification
    4326 June 1977Hong Kong Stadium, Hong Kong1001–01–01978 FIFA World Cup qualification
    4417 July 1977Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1022–04–01977 Merdeka Tournament
    4522 July 1977Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1043–15–11977 Merdeka Tournament
    4624 July 1977Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1052–04–01977 Merdeka Tournament
    4731 July 1977Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1081–01–01977 Merdeka Tournament
    4827 August 1977Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney, Australia1091–01–21978 FIFA World Cup qualification
    493 September 1977Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea1103–05–11977 Korea Cup
    505 September 1977Daegu Civic Stadium, Daegu, South Korea1111–03–01977 Korea Cup
    515 September 1977Daegu Civic Stadium, Daegu, South Korea1113–03–01977 Korea Cup
    5213 September 1977Dongdaemun Stadium, Seoul, South Korea1122–03–01977 Korea Cup
    535 November 1977Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait1151–02–21978 FIFA World Cup qualification
    5419 July 1978Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1212–04–01978 Merdeka Tournament
    5522 July 1978Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1222–02–01978 Merdeka Tournament
    5625 July 1978Stadium Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia1231–02–01978 Merdeka Tournament
    5711 December 1978Chulalongkorn University Stadium, Bangkok, Thailand1273–05–11978 Asian Games
    5817 December 1978Bangkok, Thailand1301–01–01978 Asian Games

    Honours

    Player

    Korea University
    Korea Trust Bank
    ROK Air Force
    Eintracht Frankfurt
    Bayer Leverkusen
    South Korea U20
    South Korea
    Individual
    Records
    Hyundai Horang-i
    Suwon Samsung Bluewings
    Individual