South Korea opened their World Cup campaign with a dramatic 2-1 comeback victory over the Czech Republic, overturning a second-half deficit thanks to goals from Hwang In-beom and substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu.
The Koreans dominated much of the contest at Estadio Guadalajara but found themselves behind just before the hour mark when Czech captain Ladislav Krejci headed home a long throw from Vladimir Coufal in the 59th minute. It was the Czech Republic’s first effort on target of the match.
South Korea had controlled possession and created the better chances throughout the first half, with captain Son Heung-min leading the attack. The veteran forward, playing in his fourth World Cup, was at the heart of nearly every dangerous move and registered five attempts before the break.
The equaliser arrived eight minutes after the Czech opener. Midfielder Hwang In-beom was picked out inside the area by Lee Kang-in and showed composure to round goalkeeper Matej Kovar, delicately lifting the ball into an empty net.
The Czech Republic briefly thought they had restored their lead when Tomas Soucek headed in from a free-kick in the 78th minute, only for the effort to be disallowed for offside.
That decision proved crucial. Two minutes later, South Korea completed the turnaround when substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu, making his World Cup debut, tapped in a cross from Hwang to score the winning goal.
The result was not secured until late heroics from goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu, who produced a superb save to deny Adam Hlozek from close range before stopping another effort from Michal Sadilek deep into stoppage time.
For South Korea, the victory marked their first winning start to a World Cup in four tournaments.
Son did not find the net despite several opportunities and remains two goals short of matching national legend Cha Bum-kun as South Korea’s all-time leading scorer. The 33-year-old, now with LAFC after leaving Tottenham Hotspur in 2025, was replaced shortly after Hwang’s equaliser, with his substitute ultimately making the decisive impact.
The match was attended by Gianni Infantino, although questions remained over ticket sales. FIFA announced an attendance of 44,985 at the venue, which had a stated capacity of 45,664, despite visible empty sections around the stadium.
The governing body has faced criticism over ticket pricing during the tournament across North America. Speaking earlier in the week, Infantino defended FIFA’s approach, saying pricing had been set appropriately for the market and that demand for tickets had exceeded expectations.