2023 Men's FIH Hockey World Cup | 12 Japanese players spotted on pitch in match against South Korea

01/18/2023

The 2023 FIH Men's Hockey World Cup has been nothing short of exhilarating, producing some unpredictable results, be it the draw between Australia and Argentina, or the one between Germany and Belgium. On Tuesday, one incident stood out when 12 players were on field for Japan against South Korea.

In the match between South Korea and Japan, which the former won 2-1, 12 Japanese players were spotted on the turf instead of 11, in the dying minutes. This has prompted the International Hockey Federation (FIH) to investigate the matter. Meanwhile, the result of the encounter will stand.

"In the last moments of today's FIH Hockey Men's World Cup match between Japan and Korea, the Japanese team had 12 players on the field of play, instead of a maximum of 11 as stipulated in the FIH Rules of Hockey," the FIH said in a statement.

"After the match, the FIH Officials who have not spotted this situation on the moment have spoken to the Japanese team who have explained that they hadn't realised this at all and expressed their most sincere apologies." The FIH officials have also explained the matter to the Korean team.

"FIH is currently investigating the issue to establish how it happened."