Match Progress and Key Moments
14 min: Another South African cross from a distant part of the field finds Makgopa rising above a distracted defense to head the ball, but his attempt goes well wide.
13 min: After an intense start, the match experiences a lull. South Korea begins to increase pressure, confining South Africa to their own half.
11 min: The first chance in the Mexico-Czechia match goes to the European underdogs, an important development for these teams competing for second place in the group.
10 min: South Africa tests Korean goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu’s aerial ability with a high cross, but the keeper successfully claims the ball.
7 min: South Korea plays a long ball forward, crossing near the goal. Oh Hyeon-gyu mishits his shot, but Lee Jang-in charges through the penalty area and fires a shot narrowly wide.
5 min: South Africa advances the ball and earns a corner kick. The ball is recycled to Mofokeng, who unleashes a 22-yard shot that could have been on target if not for a headed deflection, likely by Kim Min-jae.
3 min: South Africa regains possession and begins to manage the Korean press, a challenging task.
Replay of the corner shows Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae directing a glancing header just inside the near post, where Aubrey Modiba makes a crucial block.
2 min: Hwang Hee-chan of Wolverhampton Wanderers breaks free on the left and earns a corner. A snap header from the corner is cleared off the line.
1 min: South Korea plays the ball back, with their three-man backline positioned at least 15 yards behind the midfielders, signaling a confident approach to their formation.
South Korea wears red kits, South Africa wears yellow, referees are in black, and Facundo Tello blows the whistle to start the match.
A note from commentator Peter Oh expresses anticipation for the match and hopes for another standout moment from Oh Hyeon-gyu, who scored a notable winner against Czechia.
Alex Abnos is providing updates on the concurrent Czechia vs Mexico match.
The game is held at Estadio Monterrey, located in the suburbs of Monterrey.
Current group standings are:
- Mexico – 6 points, group winner
- South Korea – 3 points, 0 goal difference
- Czechia – 1 point, -1 goal difference
- South Africa – 1 point, -2 goal difference
If South Korea wins, they secure second place in the group and advance to face Canada at the Temporarily Renamed Los Angeles Stadium.
If the match ends in a draw, South Korea will still finish second unless Czechia achieves an unlikely victory over Mexico in Estadio Azteca. Even then, South Korea’s advancement is highly probable, with odds of a four-point team being eliminated at less than 1%.
If South Africa wins, the same scenarios apply but with South Korea awaiting results to determine if they advance as a third-place team with a favorable goal difference.
Referee Profile: Facundo Tello
Facundo Tello from Argentina officiates this match and has a notable history:
- He was the only South American referee selected for Euro 2024. His officiating in a Scotland match drew criticism, with Scotland’s coach Steve Clarke questioning the practice of appointing referees from other continents. podcasters reviewed the incident and concluded the decision was debatable.
- He issued ten red cards during the 2022 Argentine Champions Trophy final, including seven during a melee following Racing’s winning goal celebration against Boca Juniors. This led to five Boca and two Racing players being sent off, turning the match into a 10v9 game.
Tello’s refereeing has caused some controversy in South Korea.
He also officiated the match where South Korea advanced to the knockout rounds in 2022 with a late winner against Portugal.
During the DR Congo vs Jamaica intercontinental qualifying playoff, he had to leave injured in the 111th minute.
Assistant referees Juan Pablo Belatti and Gabriel Chade, also from Argentina, support him. Unusually, the head VAR official Hernán Mastrangelo is also Argentine.
Another Argentine referee, Yael Falcon Perez, is the center referee for the concurrent Czechia vs Mexico match.
Historical Matchups and Team Backgrounds
Ian Williams researched previous encounters between South Africa and South Korea across sports. He found three field hockey matches and noted that in men’s soccer, they met in the 1997 U-20 World Cup and again in 2019, when South Korea won 1-0 in the 2017 U-20 World Cup. That Korean team reached the final before losing to Ukraine.
Team Lineups and Changes
South Africa Starting XI: Williams; Modiba, Mbokazi, Okon, Mudau; Sithole, Mbatha, Mofokeng; Appollis, Makgopa, Maseko
Relebohile Mofokeng and Evidence Makgopa replace Jayden Adams and Igraam Rayners, who started the previous two games. Sphephelo Sithole returns from a one-match suspension, replacing Teboho Mokoena, who scored South Africa’s only goal so far and was described as Bafana Bafana’s “glue player.” Mokoena is suspended due to yellow card accumulation. Themba Zwane received a three-match ban after a red card in the opener.
Most South African players compete in their domestic league. Sithole plays for Tondela in Portugal. Young players Mbekezeli Mbokazi (Chicago) and Olwethu Makhanya (Philadelphia) play in Major League Soccer. Kyle Foster (Burnley) is the only player who spent last season in a prominent European league.
South Korea Starting XI: Kim Seung-gyu; Lee Gi-hyuk, Kim Min-jae, Lee Han-boem; Seol Young-woo, Paik Seung-ho, Hwang In-beom, Kim Moon-hwan; Lee Jae-sung, Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in
Lee Kang-in is the only forward retained from the first two games. Hwang Hee-chan and Oh Hyeon-gyu start instead of Lee Jae-sung and Son Heung-min, who is on the bench. Son spent a decade at Tottenham Hotspur and currently plays for Los Angeles FC.
There is some debate about coach Hong Myung-bo’s switch from a back four to a more aggressive 3-4-3 formation. Hong previously managed South Korea during their winless 2014 World Cup campaign and returned after Jürgen Klinsmann’s dismissal. He also played professionally.
Additional Context and Trivia
As a cultural note, the John Denver song "Take Me Home, Country Roads" has become an unofficial anthem for this tournament, despite few fans likely having visited West Virginia.
One team in the 48-team tournament chose a training base in West Virginia. The identity of that team remains a point of interest.
South Africa has never advanced beyond the group stage in the World Cup. They were banned for decades and qualified for the finals for the first time in 2018, earning two draws and one loss. Their first World Cup win was in 2002, but they narrowly missed advancing due to the goals-scored tiebreaker.
Their only other World Cup appearance was as hosts in 2010, where they achieved a notable victory over France in the final group game but missed the knockout rounds on goal difference.
South Korea hosted the World Cup in 2002, achieving their best performance by reaching the semifinals with three wins. They have qualified for every tournament since then and reached the knockout rounds twice.
This match marks the first World Cup men’s tournament meeting between South Africa and South Korea.
Group Standings and Qualification Scenarios
To follow the concurrent group match, Alex Abnos provides updates at the linked source.
Mexico has qualified as group winners and will face a third-placed team from Groups C, E, F, H, or I. Czechia could match Mexico’s points but Mexico leads on head-to-head.
South Korea will guarantee qualification with a win or draw against South Africa.
Czechia can progress in second place if they beat Mexico, South Africa beats South Korea, and Czechia finishes above South Africa. If Czechia finishes third, there may still be a route to advance.
South Africa can progress in second place by beating South Korea and finishing above Czechia. If they finish third, they may also have a path to advance.
All qualification permutations are detailed in the linked analysis.
