Hwang leads South Korea comeback over Czechia on World Cup opening day
Hwang In-beom scored once and assisted Oh Hyeon-gyu’s winner as South Korea beat Czechia 2-1 in Group A, Al Jazeera and AP reported.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
South Korea opened its 2026 World Cup campaign with a 2-1 comeback win over Czechia on Thursday night in Zapopan, Mexico. Al Jazeera and The Associated Press reported that Hwang In-beom drove the turnaround, scoring the equaliser and setting up Oh Hyeon-gyu’s late winner in Group A.
The match was the second fixture on the tournament’s opening day. According to Al Jazeera and AP, Czechia went ahead in the 59th minute through captain Ladislav Krejci, who headed in after a long throw into the penalty area.
South Korea had been unable to turn its earlier pressure into a goal, the report said. The first half drew jeers from the crowd as both teams left the field, with neither side producing enough to break through before the interval.
Hwang turns the match
Al Jazeera and AP reported that South Korea levelled in the 67th minute when Hwang created space with a feint before scoring. The move took two Czech players out of the play and shifted the match toward the South Koreans.
Hwang then supplied the decisive pass in the 80th minute, crossing from the right side for Oh to finish. The goal completed South Korea’s comeback and gave the team three points in its first match of the tournament.
Led by Son Heung-min, South Korea controlled more of the ball and produced more shots than Czechia, according to Al Jazeera and AP. The report said the South Koreans, ranked 25th by FIFA, had most of the clearer chances against the 38th-ranked Czechs but did not make the early pressure count.
Czechia were playing their first World Cup match since 2006, Al Jazeera and AP reported. The defeat left them third in Group A after the first day of matches.
Seats empty despite near-capacity figure
The announced crowd at Guadalajara Stadium was 44,985, just short of the venue’s 45,664 capacity, according to Al Jazeera and AP. The report said many seats in central sections were unoccupied, with additional empty seats visible elsewhere in the ground.
Earlier Thursday, Mexico began the tournament with a 2-0 win over nine-man South Africa at Estadio Azteca, Al Jazeera reported. That result put Mexico top of Group A on goal difference, with South Korea second, Czechia third and South Africa fourth.
The next Group A matches are scheduled for June 18, according to Al Jazeera and AP. Mexico will play South Korea in Zapopan, while Czechia will face South Africa in Atlanta.
Al Jazeera and AP reported that the expanded World Cup format sends the top two teams from each of the 12 groups into the knockout stage, along with the eight best third-placed teams. The knockouts begin with a round of 32.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.