South Korea dug deep in the second-half and came back to defeat the Czech Republic 2-1 in their opening FIFA World Cup 2026 match on Friday, flipping a deficit into three points with two goals in the space of eleven minutes.
While the Koreans dominated large stretches of the contest, they still found themselves behind when Czech defender Ladislav Krejci headed home from close range in the 59th minute and gave his side a surprise lead against the run of play.
South Korea responded immediately. In-Beom Hwang pulled them level in the 67th minute with a bit of class, taking a pass inside the box and delicately lifting it over keeper Matej Kovar to make it 1-1.
The Czech Republic thought they had gotten the lead again when Captain Tomas Soucek headed into the top corner from a set-piece in the 77th minute, but a VAR review ruled the goal out for offside.
Three minutes later South Korea completed the turnaround. Hwang delivered a dangerous cross into the area and substitute Hyeon-Gyu Oh met it perfectly, firing into the centre of the net to put his side ahead for the first time.
The Czech Republic threw everything forward late on, with Adam Hlozek and Michal Sadilek both coming close, but Seung-Gyu Kim stood firm in goal. It got worse for the Czechs when defender Ladislav Krejci was sent off late in the match.
South Korea were the better team for most of it, firing off far more shots and testing Kovar repeatedly. The keeper made several big saves that kept the Europeans in it longer than they deserved.
The win puts South Korea in a good spot early in the group. For the Czech Republic, it’s a quick wake-up call for improvement having been denied a winner by VAR and down to ten men in their first game.
