South Korea kicked off their FIFA World Cup campaign with a solid 2-1 win against Czechia. The Czechs played well in the first half, which ended goalless, but South Korea came back strong in the second half to clinch the match.
South Korea vs Czechia: South Korea pulled off a thrilling 2-1 comeback win against Czechia in their opening match of the FIFA World Cup 2026. The game, which was the second match of the tournament, was held on Friday morning at the Guadalajara Stadium in Mexico.
The 2026 World Cup kicked off with a grand opening ceremony featuring performances by Colombian pop star Shakira and Nigerian pop star Burna Boy. In the tournament's second game, South Korea secured a victory with goals from Hwang In-beom and Oh Hyeon-gyu.
South Korea started their World Cup journey on a high note by defeating Czechia 2-1. The first half was a tight affair, with Czechia playing some good football and South Korea launching counter-attacks. However, neither team could break the deadlock, and the first half ended 0-0.
In the second half, South Korea increased the pressure. In the 49th minute, a powerful shot from J.S. Lee was saved by the Czechia goalkeeper, M. Kovář.
South Korea wins a hard-fought match
The action didn't stop there. In the 56th minute, J.S. Lee made a great run down the left flank and almost scored, but the Czech goalkeeper came forward to make a crucial save.
But this is football, where the game can change in an instant. And that's exactly what happened. In the 58th minute, Ladislav Krejčí scored a brilliant header to put Czechia 1-0 ahead. However, their lead was short-lived. In the 67th minute, South Korea equalised through a clever goal from Hwang In-beom, making the score 1-1. This was Hwang In-beom's first international goal of his career.
Winning start for South Korea with a 2-1 victory
Later, in the 77th minute, Czechia found the net from a set-piece, but the goal was disallowed for offside. South Korea then ramped up the pressure, and it paid off in the 80th minute when Oh Hyeon-gyu scored to give them a 2-1 lead. Moments later, South Korean goalkeeper S.G. Kim made a fantastic save. Throughout the match, South Korea launched several counter-attacks, many of which started from the midfield where the experienced H.M. Son played a crucial role.
Another notable aspect of the match was that the referee did not have to show a single card. Towards the end, Czechia tried hard to get back into the game and created a few chances, but another excellent save from Korean keeper S.G. Kim kept them at bay. No more goals were scored in the match.
In the end, South Korea began their World Cup campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Czechia.
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