Kang Ju-hyeok

Kang Ju-hyeok is a South Korean professional footballer who plays as a forward for K League 1 club FC Seoul. He made his debut professional appearance in the 2024 K League 1 season.

IG rashford_kang

Life and career

Early life and youth career

Kang Ju-hyeok was born on August27, 2006, in Seoul. His parents are both former track and field runners and his older brother is footballer. Influenced by his sibling, he began playing football as a hobby in Anyang, Gyeonggi, before being scouted by Sinjeong Elementary School. Kang played in the selection match to qualify for the 2018 Volkswagen Junior World Masters tournament, where he was bestowed a trophy for being the top scorer. In 2019, he was a recipient of Best Eleven Award at the 31st Cha Bum-keun Football Awards.
Kang enrolled at Osan Middle School and played for the FC Seoul U-15 Team. At the 2023 Futures Star Awards, he was given the Star Award. Kang is attending Osan High School and plays for FC Seoul U-18 Team. He is credited in part for leading the team to victory at the 2022 K League U-18 Championship.

Senior career

Kang signed with FC Seoul for the 2024 K League 1 season as the second semi-professional footballer in the club's history following Kang Seong-jin. He made his first appearance as a substitute; at seventeen years, nine months, and six days old, he became the youngest player to debut in FC Seoul and the third youngest in K League history. Kang scored his debut league goal in FC Seoul's match against Incheon United in July. He became the second 17-year-old to score that year after Yang Min-hyeok.

International career

Kang played for the South Korea U-17 football team, where he scored eleven goals in seven matches. He was also selected to represent the U-20 national team.

Style of play

Kang plays as a forward for FC Seoul. For the national team, he has been utilized as a winger. A judge of the Futures Star Awards highlighted Kang's "exceptional" physical energy and felt that he excels among others in his age group. Kang cites Marcus Rashford as his role model.