Son Heung-min creates a new legacy following a close predecessor after South Korea defeated the Czech Republic in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
On 12 June 2026, an interesting story unfolded after the first match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In the second Group A match, South Korea defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, despite falling behind in the second half from a goal by Ladislav Krejci in the 59th minute.
However, South Korea quickly responded with two goals. Hwang In-beom equalized at 1-1 in the 67th minute, and substitute forward Oh Hyun-gyu, who replaced Son Heung-min, scored the winning goal in the 80th minute.
With this result, South Korea earned their first 3 points in the 2026 World Cup, sitting second in Group A behind co-host Mexico, who defeated South Africa 2-0.
Meanwhile, Son Heung-min, the star forward from LA FC, made new history by appearing in his fourth FIFA World Cup final tournament, having previously played in 2014, 2018, and 2022, totaling 11 matches.
This achievement makes Son Heung-min, formerly a Tottenham striker in the English Premier League, South Korea’s second player to appear in four World Cups, following Hong Myung-bo, who played in 1990, 1994, 1998, and 2002, totaling 16 matches.
Hong Myung-bo is now the head coach of the South Korean national team at the 2026 World Cup, with Son Heung-min serving as the team captain.
