South Korea off to a winning start in the 2026 FIFA World Cup following a 2--1 comeback victiry over a stubborn Czechia in an entertaining match played at the Estadio Guadalajara in Zapopan, Mexico City.
A first half largely controlled by the Asian side offered little in front of goal, aside from a couple of opportunities for Son, who was unable to beat Kovar from close range amid last-ditch defending and an untimely slip.
Although the second half initially looked set to follow a similar pattern, Czechia struck against the run of play in familiar fashion, with captain Krejci rising to head home from a long Coufal throw-in. However, Hong’s side responded just eight minutes later, as Hwang In-beom produced a composed, well-placed finish to restore parity just before the hydration break.
Hwang would again prove decisive shortly after, racing onto a through ball before delivering a precise low cross across the face of goal, which substitute Oh met first time to seal the comeback victory.
Live Updates:
FULL-TIME!
90+ 3' - Czechia work a superb move as Hlozek drives into the box before sliding the ball right for Chytil, who immediately sweeps it back toward the penalty spot. Sadilek arrives unmarked with only the goalkeeper to beat and looks set to place his effort into the bottom corner, but Kim Seung-gyu reacts brilliantly, scrambling across his line to produce a crucial save and deny a certain goal.
90'- 6 added minutes!
87'- Hwang Hee-chan drives into the box and unleashes a series of stepovers as he looks to open up a shooting angle. Although he manages to wrong-foot Chaloupek, leaving him on the turf, he still cannot get the shot away as Coufal arrives in time to support and help shield Kovar’s goal.
74' - Kim Seung-gyu nearly puts his side in trouble after a dangerous moment inside his own penalty area, allowing the ball to roll across his body close to the byline and drawing pressure from Chory. With the Czech forward closing in, the South Korea goalkeeper eventually reacts in time, clearing the danger with a hurried clearance to avoid conceding a second goal against the run of play.
65'- Czechia appear content to let South Korea dominate possession as they retreat into a compact defensive shape, with almost all of their outfield players positioned deep in their own half and close to Kovar's goal. Holding the advantage, Koubek's side are showing little urgency to push forward, preferring to stay organised at the back, though that cautious approach could leave gaps for counter-attacks if South Korea can exploit the space behind.
54' - Czechia are yet to test the South Korea goalkeeper as the game approaches the 60-minute mark, with Kim Seung-gyu largely untroubled between the posts. At the other end, Hong's side have looked more threatening, forcing Kovar into three saves overall, including two since the break, but neither team has managed to find the breakthrough.
46' - SECOND HALF UNDERWAY in Zapopan!
45' - Egyptian referee Amin Mohamed blows for HALF-TIME at the Guadalajara Stadium!
43' - Sulc cleverly drags Paik and Hwang In‑beom out of position to play in Zeleny, but the return pass is overhit and sails beyond the forward, resulting in a South Korea throw‑in.
40' - Son is really a menace for the Cechia defense. The ex Spurs man has had a hand in four of South Korea’s last 10 World Cup goals — three scored and one created.
37' Chnace for South Korea! Kim Min‑jae bursts into Czechia’s half to nick Zeleny’s pass and slips it into Son, who weaves from right to left into the box and drags a low effort narrowly wide of the near post — another chance spurned.
35' - Son receives Lee Jae‑sung’s pass on the half‑turn 25 yards out, takes a touch and rips a drive that whistles just over Kovář’s crossbar
30' - Lee Gi‑hyuk flicks Chaloupek’s raking 35‑yard pass down the pitch into Sulc’s path, who tries a volley from distance. The goalkeeper miscues his effort and the ball balloons onto the roof of the net and drifts harmlessly past Kim Seung‑gyu.
25' - Play resumes, Son is incensed after a tussle with Hranac halts the move, but the referee waves play on — South Korea are denied a free‑kick just left of centre, about 20 yards out.
23' Hydration break!
18' - Souček drifts inside and fires a low cross to the far post aiming for former West Ham colleague Coufal. Coufal meets it with a knock‑down, but Lee Tae‑seok inadvertently deflects it out for a corner.
10' - South Korea keep the early pressure on Czechia through set-pieces. They get the game’s first corner-kick, but Lee Kang-in’s near-post delivery is flicked away.
5' - South Korea, enjoying their first sustained spell on the ball, probe for a route through Czechia’s midfield as they pass patiently around the centre circle. With both teams set up in matching 3-4-3s, it’ll come down to winning those one-vs-one duels to carve out pockets of space in the crowded middle of the park.
1' - Kick off at the Estadio Guadalajara!
SOUTH KOREA starting XI (3-4-3): Kim Seung-gyu; Lee Gi-hyuk, Kim Min-jae, Lee Han-beom; Lee Tae-seok, Paik Seung-ho, Hwang In-beom, Seol Young-woo; Lee Jae-sung, Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in.
SOUTH KOREA SUBS: Kim Tae-hyeon, Cho Gue-sung, Hwang Hee-chan, Song Bum-keun, Cho Wi-je, Kim Moon-hwan, Park Jin-seob, Bae Jun-ho, Oh Hyeon-gyu, Yang Hyun-jun, Jo Hyeon-woo, Jens Castrop, Kim Jin-gyu, Eom Ji-sung, Lee Gong-gyeong.
CZECHIA XI (3-4-3): Matej Kovar; Ladislav Krejci, Robin Hranac, Stepan Chaloupek; Jaroslav Zeleny, Alexandr Sojka, Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Coufal; Lukas Provod, Patrik Schick, Pavel Sulc.
CZECHIA SUBS: David Zima, Tomas Holes, Vladimir Darida, Adam Hlozek, Jan Kuchta, Lukas Cery, Mojmir Chytil, David Jurasek, Jindrich Stanek, Michal Sadilek, Tomas Chory, David Doudera, Lukas Hornicek, Hugo Sochurek, Denis Visinsky.
