Kim was part of
South Korean under-23 team in
2004 and
2008 Summer Olympics. Kim represented
South Korea in the
2007 AFC Asian Cup. He scored Korea's winning goal against
Indonesia and converted the decisive spot-kick in Korea's quarter-final
penalty shootout victory over
Iran. However, his penalty miss in the shootout against
Iraq meant that South Korea went out in the semi-finals stage. In the
2010 FIFA World Cup, Kim played a pivotal role as a holding midfielder for the South Korean team's advance to the round of 16. Despite rising interests from European clubs, he left to continue serving his country in Gwangju Sangmu. On 22 March 2019, Kim retired through an official retirement ceremony before the match between South Korea and Bolivia at
Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium. ==Style of play==