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)
Methods to observe: Sustain with all updates on Al Jazeera Sport
South Korea, Asia’s most profitable workforce on the World Cup, start their 2026 marketing campaign with a sport in opposition to Czechia, who’re again on the match after a 20-year absence.
Beneficial Tales
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With a proficient 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 will likely be eager for an early win in a tricky group that additionally consists of cohosts Mexico and South Africa.
However Fortieth-ranked Czechia are not 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 will likely 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 closing match, although it’s not confirmed.
Followers will likely be hopeful of the captain that includes on the scoresheet after he scored twice in a latest 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 workforce into the knockout rounds. The Wolverhampton Wanderers ahead is now eager for a repeat efficiency on the upcoming match.
“If I can have one other play like that, will probably be nice for myself and for our workforce,” mentioned Hwang, who will likely be showing at his third World Cup. “I’m working onerous for a second like that.
“Each match is necessary, however the first match is particularly so.”
Czechia: Two-time runners-up
As Czechoslovakia, the Czech workforce completed runners-up in 1934 and 1962. However since then, their document 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 method 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 20 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 presents one other skilled choice up entrance.
Koubek may even lean on West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek and 35-year-old Vladimir Darida to supply 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 greatest third-placed groups – proceed to the subsequent section, the spherical of 32, which has been launched on the World Cup for the primary time.
All sq. in head-to-head document
South Korea and Czechia have met thrice, successful 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 fantastic type 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 likewise thrashed Gibraltar.
South Korea, however, are in combined type. 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 look at 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 the USA can tune in to Fox.
South Korea and Czechia workforce information
Coach Koubek has a variety headache awaiting.
With Hlozek just lately recovering from damage, and Sulc and Lukas Provod additionally within the combine, Koubek must make the powerful name on which two attackers will assist Schick.
In the meantime, South Korea’s coach Hong Myung-bo has to cope with some issues.
Winger Bae Jun-ho – one of many youngest gamers within the squad – is a serious doubt resulting from an ankle damage, however left-back Lee Tae-seok has returned to workforce 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 may 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 hold updated with group standings, real-time match outcomes and schedules.
