Hwang Hee-chan facts for kids
Hwang in 2024
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 26 January 1996 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Chuncheon, Gangwon, South Korea | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.77 m | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Forward | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Club information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Current club | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
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| Number | 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2014 | Pohang Steelers | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2020 | Red Bull Salzburg | 86 | (28) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | → FC Liefering (loan) | 31 | (13) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2019 | → Hamburger SV (loan) | 20 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2022 | RB Leipzig | 20 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | → Wolverhampton Wanderers (loan) | 30 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2022– | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 71 | (17) | |||||||||||||||||||
| National team‡ | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | South Korea U17 | 7 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2014 | South Korea U20 | 12 | (6) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | South Korea U23 | 22 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2016– | South Korea | 69 | (15) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Honours
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† Appearances (Goals). |
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| Hwang Hee-chan | |
| Hangul |
황희찬
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|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Hwang Huichan |
| McCune–Reischauer | Hwang Hŭich'an |
Hwang Hee-chan (Korean: 황희찬) is a professional footballer from South Korea. He was born on January 26, 1996. Hwang plays as a forward for the English club Wolverhampton Wanderers. He also plays for the South Korea national team.
In South Korea, Hwang is known as "Hwangso" (Hangul: 황소). This nickname means "bull" in Korean. He got this name because of his strong and aggressive way of playing football.
Contents
Youth Career: Rising Star
Hwang Hee-chan was born in Chuncheon, South Korea. His family moved to Bucheon soon after he was born. They lived there until he was eleven years old.
Hwang started playing football at Uijeongbu Singok Elementary School. In 2008, he was the top scorer in two big youth tournaments in South Korea. These were the Hwarangdaegi Tournament and the Dongwon Youth Cup. He also played very well for the South Korean national under-12 team. Hwang scored 22 goals in the Kanga Cup, which was a new record for that tournament. Because of his amazing performances, he won the grand prize of the Cha Bum-kun Football Award. This award is given to the best young footballers in South Korea.
After elementary school, he joined Pohang Jecheol Middle School. He played for the Pohang Steelers under-15 team, which was linked to the school. In 2011, his team won the middle school division of the Korean National School League. Hwang was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the competition.
Later, he went to Pohang Jecheol High School and played for the Pohang Steelers under-18 team. In 2013, he scored 12 goals in 12 games in the K League Junior. This helped his high school team win the league. He also led Pohang to another title in the National School League, where he was again the MVP and top scorer.
Club Career: Journey to the Top
Red Bull Salzburg: European Debut
In December 2014, Hwang Hee-chan decided to join the Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg. He chose this over signing with his youth club, Pohang Steelers. On November 3, 2016, Hwang scored two goals in a Europa League match against Nice. This helped Salzburg get their first win in that campaign.
During the 2017–18 season, Salzburg had their best European journey ever. They reached the quarter-finals of the Europa League. On April 12, Hwang scored a goal against Lazio, helping his team win 4–1. This win sent them to the semi-finals.
In the 2019–20 season, Hwang played alongside talented attackers like Erling Haaland and Takumi Minamino. This trio was praised for their play in the Champions League. Hwang was involved in eight goals, scoring three and assisting three others. He also won two penalty kicks for his team. People described his playing style as energetic, with good passing and dribbling skills. That season, Hwang had an amazing record of 16 goals and 22 assists in 40 games.
RB Leipzig: Moving to Germany
On July 8, 2020, Hwang signed a five-year contract with RB Leipzig in Germany. He made his debut on September 12, scoring a goal and setting up another in a cup match. He helped Leipzig reach the 2021 DFB-Pokal Final by scoring in earlier rounds.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Premier League Star
On August 29, 2021, Hwang joined the Premier League team Wolverhampton Wanderers on a loan. He scored his first goal for Wolves on September 11, 2021, against Watford. He scored again on October 2, getting both goals in a 2–1 win against Newcastle United.
On January 26, 2022, Wolves made his move permanent. He signed a contract until 2026. In his first Premier League season, he scored five goals.
Hwang scored his first FA Cup goal against Liverpool on January 7, 2023. On September 30, 2023, he scored the winning goal against Manchester City. This gave the champions their first loss of the 2023–24 season.
On October 28, 2023, Hwang scored against Newcastle United. This made him the first Wolves player in 50 years to score six goals in the first ten games of a top-flight season. On December 21, 2023, he signed a new contract with Wolves until 2028. A few days later, he scored two goals against Brentford. This made him only the third Wolves player to score at least 10 Premier League goals in one season.
In July 2024, during a friendly match, Hwang faced an incident where he was reportedly targeted with a disrespectful comment. His team quickly showed their support for him and filed a complaint to the UEFA.
Hwang scored his first goal of the 2024-25 season against Man United. This goal helped Wolves move out of the relegation zone.
International Career: Representing South Korea
Youth and Olympic Teams
In the 2012 AFC U-16 Championship, Hwang was the top scorer with five goals. This included three goals in one game against North Korea.
He played in the 2016 Summer Olympics. He scored a goal in a group match against Germany, which ended in a 3–3 draw.
Asian Games Success
Hwang played for the under-23 team at the 2018 Asian Games. In the final against Japan, he scored the winning goal. This victory was very important for Hwang and his teammates. It meant they were excused from mandatory military service.
FIFA World Cup Moments
Hwang played for South Korea in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He started in the first two matches.
In the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Hwang scored a very important goal. It was the winning goal in stoppage time against Portugal. This 2–1 win helped South Korea move on to the Round of 16. They were later eliminated by Brazil.
AFC Asian Cup
Hwang was called up for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup. He had a hip injury just before the tournament. He played as a substitute in later matches. In a quarter-final win against Australia, he scored a penalty goal. He also won a free-kick that led to the winning goal.
Career statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | League cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Red Bull Salzburg | 2015–16 | Austrian Bundesliga | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | Austrian Bundesliga | 26 | 12 | 6 | 2 | — | 3 | 2 | 35 | 16 | ||
| 2017–18 | Austrian Bundesliga | 20 | 5 | 3 | 3 | — | 14 | 5 | 37 | 13 | ||
| 2019–20 | Austrian Bundesliga | 27 | 11 | 5 | 1 | — | 8 | 4 | 40 | 16 | ||
| Total | 86 | 28 | 15 | 6 | — | 25 | 11 | 126 | 45 | |||
| FC Liefering (loan) | 2014–15 | Austrian 2. Liga | 13 | 2 | — | — | — | 13 | 2 | |||
| 2015–16 | Austrian 2. Liga | 18 | 11 | — | — | — | 18 | 11 | ||||
| Total | 31 | 13 | — | — | — | 31 | 13 | |||||
| Hamburger SV (loan) | 2018–19 | 2. Bundesliga | 20 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 2 | ||
| RB Leipzig | 2020–21 | Bundesliga | 18 | 0 | 5 | 3 | — | 3 | 0 | 26 | 3 | |
| 2021–22 | Bundesliga | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | |||
| Total | 20 | 0 | 6 | 3 | — | 3 | 0 | 29 | 3 | |||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers (loan) | 2021–22 | Premier League | 30 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 31 | 5 | |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2022–23 | Premier League | 27 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 | — | 32 | 4 | |
| 2023–24 | Premier League | 29 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — | 31 | 13 | ||
| 2024–25 | Premier League | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 18 | 2 | ||
| Total | 71 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 1 | — | 81 | 19 | |||
| Career total | 258 | 65 | 25 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 28 | 11 | 319 | 87 | ||
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Korea | 2016 | 3 | 0 |
| 2017 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2018 | 12 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 11 | 2 | |
| 2020 | 2 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 9 | 2 | |
| 2022 | 8 | 3 | |
| 2023 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2024 | 10 | 3 | |
| Total | 69 | 15 | |
- Scores and results list South Korea's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Hwang goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 13 June 2017 | Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha, Qatar |  Qatar |
2–2 | 2–3 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 27 March 2018 | Stadion Śląski, Chorzów, Poland |  Poland |
2–2 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 3 | 22 January 2019 | Rashid Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates |  Bahrain |
1–0 | 2–1 (aet) | 2019 AFC Asian Cup |
| 4 | 10 October 2019 | Hwaseong Stadium, Hwaseong, South Korea |  Sri Lanka |
3–0 | 8–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 17 November 2020 | BSFZ-Arena, Maria Enzersdorf, Austria | Qatar |
1–0 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 6 | 9 June 2021 | Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea | Sri Lanka |
4–0 | 5–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 11 November 2021 | Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea |  United Arab Emirates |
1–0 | 1–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 6 June 2022 | Daejeon World Cup Stadium, Daejeon, South Korea |  Chile |
1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 9 | 23 September 2022 | Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea |  Costa Rica |
1–0 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 10 | 2 December 2022 | Education City Stadium, Al Rayyan, Qatar |  Portugal |
2–1 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup |
| 11 | 17 October 2023 | Suwon World Cup Stadium, Suwon, South Korea |  Vietnam |
2–0 | 6–0 | Friendly |
| 12 | 16 November 2023 | Seoul World Cup Stadium, Seoul, South Korea |  Singapore |
2–0 | 5–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 13 | 2 February 2024 | Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah, Qatar |  Australia |
1–1 | 2–1 (aet) | 2023 AFC Asian Cup |
| 14 | 6 June 2024 | National Stadium, Kallang, Singapore | Singapore |
7–0 | 7–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 15 | 10 September 2024 | Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat, Oman |  Oman |
1–0 | 3–1 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours: Awards and Trophies
Red Bull Salzburg
- Austrian Bundesliga: 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2019–20
- Austrian Cup: 2015–16, 2016–17, 2019–20
RB Leipzig
- DFB-Pokal runner-up: 2020–21
South Korea U23
- Asian Games: 2018
- AFC U-23 Championship runner-up: 2016
Individual
- AFC U-16 Championship top goalscorer: 2012
- Korean FA Goal of the Year: 2022
- IFFHS Asian Men's Team of the Year: 2022, 2023, 2024
See also
In Spanish: Hwang Hee-chan para niños
