Who: South Korea vs Czechia
What: FIFA World Cup 2026 Group A match
The place: Estadio Guadalajara, Zapopan, Mexico
When: Thursday, 8pm native time (02:00 GMT Friday)
Find out how to observe: Sustain with all updates on Al Jazeera Sport
South Korea, Asia’s most profitable staff on the World Cup, start their 2026 marketing campaign with a sport in opposition to Czechia, who’re again on the event after a 20-year absence.
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With a gifted squad that includes Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in and Kim Min-jae, former semifinalists South Korea – who’re ranked twenty fifth on this planet – are favourites within the Group A conflict and can be eager for an early win in a tricky group that additionally contains cohosts Mexico and South Africa.
However Fortieth-ranked Czechia aren’t any pushovers. With gamers like Adam Hlozek, Patrik Schick and Pavel Sulc, they’re greater than able to pulling off an upset.
Son leads South Korea’s cost
As all the time, all eyes can be on South Korea’s celebrity Son Heung-min, who now performs his membership soccer for Los Angeles FC.
Set for his fourth look on the finals, the 33-year-old former Tottenham winger could possibly be showing in his remaining event, although it’s not confirmed.
Followers can be hopeful of the captain that includes on the scoresheet after he scored twice in a current pleasant.
The Koreans reached the final 16 in 2022, with Hwang Hee-chan scoring a stoppage-time winner in opposition to Portugal to take his staff into the knockout rounds. The Wolverhampton Wanderers ahead is now eager for a repeat efficiency on the upcoming event.
“If I can have one other play like that, will probably be nice for myself and for our staff,” mentioned Hwang, who can be showing at his third World Cup. “I’m working laborious for a second like that.
“Each match is vital, however the first match is very so.”
Czechia: Two-time runners-up
As Czechoslovakia, the Czech staff completed runners-up in 1934 and 1962. However since then, their file has been poor, with solely 4 appearances, together with only one previous the group stage – a quarterfinal run in 1990.
The Czechs at the moment are again on the World Cup after 20 lengthy years, having navigated their technique to the finals by dramatic penalty shootout wins within the UEFA qualifiers.
The appointment of coach Miroslav Koubek in December 2025 rotated their fortunes as they went from having a crisis-hit marketing campaign to ending the job with flying colors.
Now, after twenty years, as they return to soccer’s grandest stage, the Czechs will hope to sneak into the knockouts.
With two-metre (6ft 7-inch) Slavia Prague striker Tomas Chory at their disposal, Koubek’s facet will search to impose their physicality on the South Koreans.
They’re blessed with extra attacking firepower in Bayer Leverkusen striker and Euro 2020 joint high scorer Schick, whereas Hoffenheim striker Hlozek gives one other skilled choice up entrance.
Koubek can even lean on West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek and 35-year-old Vladimir Darida to offer expertise and stability.
How does the World Cup group stage work?
South Korea, Czechia, Mexico and South Africa are in Group A.
The highest two groups from every of the 12 teams – together with the eight finest third-placed groups – proceed to the following section, the spherical of 32, which has been launched on the World Cup for the primary time.
All sq. in head-to-head file
South Korea and Czechia have met 3 times, profitable one match every, whereas the opposite sport resulted in a draw.
Their final assembly dates again to June 2016 – precisely a decade in the past – when South Korea emerged 2-1 winners in a pleasant in Prague.
Type information:
(Final 5 video games, newest first)
South Korea: W-W-L-L-W
Czechia: W-W-W-W-W
Czechia are in tremendous kind heading into the opener, having overwhelmed Kosovo and Guatemala of their pre-World Cup friendlies. Earlier than that, they beat Denmark and Eire on penalties within the UEFA qualifying playoffs, and in addition thrashed Gibraltar.
South Korea, however, are in blended kind. They beat El Salvador and thrashed Trinidad and Tobago within the pre-World Cup friendlies, however misplaced to Austria and the Ivory Coast.
The place to observe South Korea vs Czechia?
Followers in South Korea can watch the sport on platforms Chzzk and JTBC, with kickoff scheduled at 11am native time on Friday.
In Czechia, CT Sport Plus, CT Sport and Nova Motion will present the sport, which is about to start at 4am native time on Friday.
Viewers in the UK can watch it on ITV, whereas these in america can tune in to Fox.
South Korea and Czechia staff information
Coach Koubek has a variety headache awaiting.
With Hlozek just lately recovering from harm, and Sulc and Lukas Provod additionally within the combine, Koubek must make the robust name on which two attackers will assist Schick.
In the meantime, South Korea’s coach Hong Myung-bo has to take care of some issues.
Winger Bae Jun-ho – one of many youngest gamers within the squad – is a serious doubt resulting from an ankle harm, however left-back Lee Tae-seok has returned to staff coaching after a sore calf.
South Korea’s predicted beginning XI
Kim Seung-gyu (goalkeeper); Kim Min-jae, Lee Han-beom, Lee Gi-hyuk; Seol Younger-woo, Lee Tae-seok, Hwang In-beom, Paik Seung-ho; Lee Kang-in, Lee Jae-sung; Son Heung-min
Czechia’s predicted beginning XI
Matej Kovar (goalkeeper); Vladimir Coufal, David Doudera, Tomas Holes, Ladislav Krejci, Jaroslav Zeleny; Tomas Soucek, Michal Sadilek; Adam Hlozek, Pavel Sulc, Patrik Schick
You possibly can observe the motion on Al Jazeera’s devoted FIFA World Cup 2026 web page with all the most recent information, match build-up and reside textual content commentary, and preserve updated with group standings, real-time match outcomes and schedules.
