South Korea managed to comeback from a goal-down in their opening Group A match of FIFA World Cup 2026 to beat Czechia in Guadalajara on Thursday night.
Published: June 12, 2026, 12:01 PM IST
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Lee Han-beom (centre) of South Korea vies for the ball with Patrik Schick (left) of the Czech Republic during their Group A match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup at Guadalajara Stadium, Mexico. (Photo: IANS)
South Korea vs Czechia FIFA World Cup 2026: Asian giants and former World Cup semifinalists South Korea had to stage a massive comeback to down Czechia in their opening Group A match of FIFA World Cup 2026 at Estadio Zapopan in Guadalajara, Mexico, on Thursday night. South Korea had gone down by a goal soon after half-time but struck twice in 13 minutes to get their campaign off to a winning start with 2-1 win.
The star of Korean win was Hwang In-beom, who scored the equalizer in the 67th minute and set up winner in the 80th minute scored by Oh Hyeon-gyu after Ladislav Krejci’s stunning header put Czechia in the lead in the 59th minute of the match. Hwang managed to score after dodging the goalkeeper with a fake shot which managed to clear a couple of Czech players as well.
Dutch club Feyenoord’s midfielder’s cross from the right flank led to Oh Hyeon-gyu’s decisive winning strike in the 80th in a match played in front of reportedly hundreds of empty seats at Guadalajara’s Estadio Zapopan.
WATCH South Korea’s Hwang In-beom score equalizer against Czechia in FIFA World Cup 2026 match HERE…
South Korea SCORESSSSSSSSSS pic.twitter.com/CSrN7xA8jc
— Noir (@BadassNoir) June 12, 2026
“It was our first game and a very difficult one. The win itself makes me happy, but what’s even more positive is that our boys won by not giving up. I knew that we were more than capable of winning, so at 1-1, I told the boys to keep playing the way we’ve been playing, ” South Korea coach Hong Myung-bo said.
South Korea end 16-year jinx
South Korea make a comeback in 13 minutes from a goal down, which is their second-fastest in their history after one in 11 minutes against Nigeria in the FIFA World Cup 2010 edition. They also ended a 16-year wait to win their opening game of the World Cup.
The Koreans had last won the opening game in a World Cup edition against Greece in 2010 in South Africa. They beat European opponent in the tournament for a third time in a row, following wins over Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal in 2022 and Germany in 2018.
They were led by their forward Son Heung-min – playing in his 4th successive World Cup since his debut in 2010. South Korea not only controlled possession and but also outshot the Czechs, who were making their first World Cup appearance since 2006. The Koreans are ranked 25th by FIFA as compared 38th-ranked Czechs.
Son was looking to become South Korea’s top goal scorer at the World Cup and the Asian player with the most goals in the tournament. The 33-year-old former Tottenham star, who now plays for Los Angeles FC of Major League Soccer, entered Thursday having scored three goals over three prior World Cups.
Czech Republic coach Miroslav Koubek revealed that ‘probably the better team won’. “We played very well, it could have been a draw and we could have won as well,” Koubek said after the match.
In the other Group A match on Thursday, co-host Mexico defeated South Africa 2-0 in the tournament opener in Mexico City.
(How to watch and stream FIFA World Cup 2026 in India: Multiple group-stage matches that will take place simultaneously will be aired across Zee5 app and website. Link: https://www.zee5.com/)
