[Sports Round-up] S. Korean nat'l football team squads announced for EAFF E-1 Championship

Time now to take a look at what's been happening in the world of sports.

For that, we have our sports editor Paul Neat joining us in the studio.

Welcome, Paul.

Thank you.

Let's begin with football.

The South Korea national team squads were announced this afternoon ahead of the East Asia Cup.

Yes, the EAFF E-1 Football Championships that are being held in Korea next month.

For the men's team, 20 of the 23-man squad are players from the K League, with three from the J.League in Japan.

The two Kim Tae-hyeons, one from Kashima Antlers in Japan and one from Jeonbuk, as well as Ulsan's Seo Myeong-kwan, Gangwon's Seo Min-woo, Gimcheon's Lee Seung-won, Byun Jun-soo of Gwangju, and Pohang's Lee Ho-jae are in a full national team squad for the first time.

South Korea's men's games are being played at Yongin Mireu Stadium.

It's a single group of four in a round robin format, consisting of South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, and China, with matches set to begin on July 7th.

Japan won the last edition in 2022, but South Korea has the most titles with five -the last being in 2019.

Meanwhile, the women's competition will be contested between South Korea, Japan, China, and Taiwan.

Matches start on July 9th and games will take place at Hwaseong Stadium and Suwon World Cup Stadium.

There are nine overseas-based stars in the squad, including the legendary Ji So-yun, as well as Kim Shin-ji of AS Roma, Lee Geum-min and Choi Yu-ri of Birmingham City, and Lee Young-ju of Levante Badalona.

Moving on to table tennis.

Not one but two WTT medals for Lim Jong-hoon.

Yes, in the mixed doubles and men's doubles.

At the 2025 WTT Star Contender in Slovenia on Sunday, Lim won the mixed doubles with Shin Yu-bin as well as the men's doubles with An Jae-hyun.

In the mixed doubles, the pair dominated Brazil's Hugo Calderano and Bruna Takahashi in straight sets.

It marks their return to the top after a WTT win earlier this year in India.

In the men's doubles final, Lim and An stunned the world No. 1 French duo, the Lebrun brothers Felix and Alexis, with a clean 3-zero sweep.

To baseball now and the KBO.

The Kia Tigers extended their winning streak to six games.

Yes, to move up to fourth place in the standings.

This comes following a comeback win over the SSG Landers on Sunday.

The Tigers were down 2 to 3 in the 8th inning, but Kim Seok-hwan's two-run homer turned the game around.

Then, Kim Ho-ryeong's sacrifice fly in the 9th sealed the 5 to 4 win.

The Tigers now sit just 2-point-5 games behind 3rd-place the Lotte Giants, and 4-point-5 games behind league-leaders the Hanwha Eagles.

Kia have been in great form this month with 12 wins, 1 draw, and just 5 losses, boasting a win rate over 70 percent.

And finally, to MLB.

Kim Hye-seong of the Los Angeles Dodgers played a key role in the team's 13-7 win over the Washington Nationals.

Yes, indeed. He went 1-for-4, and hit his fifth double of the season.

He later reached base again on an error in the seventh inning, sparking a big rally that broke the game wide open.

Though the error didn't count as a hit, it did lead to a bases-loaded opportunity, setting the stage for Shohei Ohtani's bases-clearing triple.

Meanwhile, Kim Ha-seong of the Tampa Bay Rays is back on the road to recovery from a shoulder injury.

He went 1-for-4 with a walk, a run, and two steals during a Triple-A match on Friday.

His first game since June 12th after a hamstring problem.

Alright, thanks for that, Paul.

See you next week.

Thank you.