In Group A, South Korea achieved a come-from-behind victory over the Czech Republic thanks to second-half goals from Oh Hyun-gyu and Hwang In-beom.
Published June 12, 2026
Hwang In-beom scored one goal and added another as South Korea fought back to beat the Czech Republic 2-1 in the second leg of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in Zapopan, Mexico on Thursday night.
The first half was lackluster with jeers as both teams were sent off, but the Czech Republic took the lead in the 59th minute with captain Ladislav Krejci scoring a header from a long throw-in into the penalty area.
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South Korea tied the score in the 67th minute when Hwang made a clever move to fake a shot, bypassing two Czech players and scoring a goal. Then, in the 80th minute of the match, which was played in front of hundreds of empty seats at Guadalajara Stadium, he delivered a cross from the right side and set up Oh Hyun-kyu’s decisive shot.
South Korea, led by star forward Son Heung-min, controlled possession and outscored the Czech Republic, who were making their first World Cup appearance since 2006.
South Korea, ranked 25th in the FIFA rankings, had most of the important scoring chances against the Czech Republic, ranked 38th, but were unable to convert early on.
The announced number of spectators was 44,985 at Guadalajara Stadium, which has a capacity of 45,664. There were many empty seats in the middle section of the stands, and other empty seats were scattered throughout the stadium.
Earlier on Thursday, the biggest showdown in global soccer kicked off at the iconic Estadio Azteca, with Mexico igniting the World Cup party with a resounding 2-0 victory over nine-a-side South Africa.
Mexico took the lead in Group A with three points each, while South Korea came in second on goal difference. The Czech Republic is in third place, and South Africa is in last place. The next round of Group A will be played on June 18th, with Mexico facing South Korea in Zapopan and Czech Republic facing South Africa in Atlanta.
The top two teams in each of the 12 groups and the top eight teams in third place will advance to the final tournament starting with the round of 32.
Al Jazeera’s dedicated 2026 FIFA World Cup page allows you to track the match with all the latest news, match developments and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings, real-time results and schedule.
