South Korea beat Czechia 2-1 on the opening day of the World Cup | World Cup 2026 news

Second-half goals from Oh Hyeon-gyu and Hwang In-beom led South Korea to a Group A victory over Czechia.

Hwang In-beom scored a goal and set up another as South Korea beat Czechia 2-1 in the second leg of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Thursday night in Zapopan, Mexico.

After a first half in which both teams were humiliated on the way out, the Czechia took the lead in the 59th minute with a header by captain Ladislav Krejci after a long shot from the penalty area.

South Korea equalized in the 67th minute, when Hwang scored after a shot and a fine move to dislodge two Czech players. He then headed past Oh Hyeon-gyu’s right-hand side in the 80th minute in a match played in front of hundreds of empty seats at Guadalajara Stadium.

Led by star player Son Heung-min, South Korea dominated and eliminated the Czechs, who were making their first World Cup appearance since 2006.

The South Koreans, ranked 25th by FIFA, had plenty of chances to score against the 38th-ranked Czechs but failed to capitalize early on.

The announced attendance was 44,985 in Guadalajara’s stadium of 45,664. There were many empty seats in the middle of the station, and other empty seats were scattered around the platform.

Earlier on Thursday, Mexico started their World Cup party with a a big 2-0 win over nine South Africans, as the world’s biggest sporting spectacle kicked off at the iconic Estadio Azteca.

With three points each, Mexico top Group A, with South Korea second on goal difference. Czechia is third, and South Africa is at the bottom. In next round of Group A matches On June 18, Mexico faces South Korea in Zapopan, while the Czech Republic plays South Africa in Atlanta.

The top two teams from each of the 12 groups, along with the eight third-placed teams, go to the knockouts, which begin with a round of 32.

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