Kang-In Lee, who scored his first goal with PSG, enjoys an impressive popularity at Parc des Princes and at home in South Korea. This is obviously good for the business of the club.
He is the new darling of the Parisian public. Not only at Parc des Princes, where his name is almost as acclaimed as Kylian Mbappé’s. In just a few months, 22-year-old South Korean attacking midfielder Kang-In Lee has become a phenomenon at Paris Saint-Germain. Especially since he has finally made his mark in competition, with two goals and one assist in eight matches. To the point that sales of his jersey rival those of the French World Cup champion, both in physical stores and online.
“All recruits are made for sporting reasons,” cautiously reminds Marc Armstrong, PSG’s chief revenue officer in an interview with RMC Sport. “However, it is true that we have seen significant commercial benefits since his arrival.”
Dribbles that please
Already this summer, as his signing was barely announced, a buzz could be felt. The player was hardly known. One had to watch the matches of Valencia CF and Real Mallorca over the last five seasons to get an idea. Two clubs whose matches do not really attract crowds in France.
As the departures of Neymar and Marco Verratti were underway, compilation footage showed that Kang-In Lee could become the team’s new thrill factor. Not that Kylian Mbappé doesn’t excite, or that the other teammates lack talent, but, except for Ousmane Dembélé, none of them truly embody the culture of dribbling, quick turns in tight spaces, technical skills, and a joga bonito football that has always pleased and existed in Paris. “It’s really a magnificent signing,” Luis Enrique recently savored in a press conference. “Having him in the squad is a chance. He is young, he makes an effort, and he has a great hunger to play, which is very important in his development.”
“He’s the Nation’s little brother, we saw him grow”
His popularity goes hand in hand with the exponential rise of South Korean pop culture. It’s the Hallyu, which literally translates to “Korean wave.” BTS, Blackpink, NewJeans, Squid Game, Parasite… The hits from the land of the morning calm keep coming. And now it’s Kang-In Lee, who didn’t have to wait for his transfer to a world-renowned club to be a star in his home country, where he hasn’t even played a professional match.
There is no doubt that a good portion of the many jersey sales are thanks to the South Korean public. Saenol and Seunghwan, a couple seen at the club shop on the Champs-Élysées, confirm.
“We are so proud of him! He’s the next Son (the Tottenham player, Ed.). Koreans come to France because of him. We came from London for him. We wanted to buy his jersey, to feel how popular he is too.”
These two supporters have known him since… 2007. Like the entire South Korea, actually. Kang-In Lee was only 5 years old when he appeared on television. He participated in Fly Shoot Dori, a reality show about football in which the candidates are children who want to demonstrate their qualities. “He’s the Nation’s little brother, we saw him grow,” Fabien Yoon can testify to RMC Sport. This TV presenter and French actor in South Korea is also the host of a YouTube channel about PSG and president of the Seoul fan club. “I have been living in Korea for 16 years, this is the first time I’ve seen this,” he says. “I went to see all the national team matches, the last friendly matches, and it’s simple: I had never seen so many PSG jerseys in a stadium other than Parc des Princes. Everyone had the number 19.”
