Lee Kang-in, Hwang In-beom short-listed for AFC award as Son Heung-min misses cut

The Atlético Madrid playmaker is looking to defend his title against his countryman at Porto and Japan's Ayase Ueda of LOSC Lille.

Lee Kang-in appears for Atlético Madrid on Oct. 17. REUTERS/YONHAP

Lee Kang-in of Atlético Madrid and Hwang In-beom of Porto will face Japan's Ayase Ueda of LOSC Lille in a three-way race for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian International Player of the Year award.

The prize recognizes the year's outstanding player from an AFC member nation who competes outside Asia. Four-time winner Son Heung-min of Los Angeles FC missed out on a nomination this year.

Lee hopes to defend the title. He was the only Asian player on the Paris Saint-Germain side that won both the UEFA Champions League and Ligue 1 in the 2025-26 season. He joined Atlético Madrid in the summer.

Fellow finalist Hwang has established himself as a regular starter at Porto after transferring from Feyenoord. He also scored a goal and provided an assist to lead Korea to victory over the Czech Republic in the group stage at the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Ueda completes the three-person short list. He moved to Lille after his performances for Feyenoord.

Son — the award's most decorated winner — is absent from this year’s short list. The Korean captain, who has spent his entire professional career overseas, holds the record for the most wins in the category, with four titles in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2023.

Hwang In-beom speaks to reporters during a press conference held during the FIFA World Cup 2026 on June 18. YONHAP

In the women's category, veteran South Korean national team defender Kim Hye-ri of Suwon FC Women has been short-listed for AFC Women's Player of the Year. Kim helped Suwon reach the semifinals of the 2025-26 AFC Women's Champions League and will compete against Everton's Holly McNamara and North Korea's Kim Kyong-yong of Naegohyang Women's Football Club.

Park Youn-jeong, head coach of South Korea's under-20 women's national team, is also a finalist for AFC Women's Coach of the Year.

The awards ceremony will take place on Nov. 19 at the Aksra Theatre King Power in Bangkok.

BY LEE HAY-JUNE [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]