South Korea and Czechia open their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaigns in Guadalajara on Thursday at Estadio Chivas. The Group A meeting is the second match of the tournament.
The match kicks off Thursday, June 11 at 8 p.m. in Guadalajara (10 p.m. EDT; 3 a.m. BST Friday; 7:30 a.m. IST Friday; 12 p.m. AEST Friday). Amin Mohammed of Egypt is the referee and Mahmoud Ashour (Egypt) is the VAR. The game will be shown on ITV1 in the U.K., Fox Sports in the U.S., Zee5 in India and SBS in Australia. ESPN will provide live updates, according to ESPN.
South Korea arrive unbeaten through qualifying. Manager Hong Myung-bo has dealt with a spate of midfield injuries and has shifted to a three-man backline. Uncapped Cho Wi-je replaced injured defender Cho Yu-min in the training camp, while the squad reported no injuries in two pre-tournament friendlies. Much of the attention will be on Heung-min Son, supported by the likes of Lee Kang-in and Lee Jae-sung.
Czechia return to the World Cup for the first time since 2006 after a qualifying campaign that required two penalty shootout wins in UEFA playoffs, over Ireland and Denmark. Miroslav Koubek’s side showed no injury issues in pre-tournament friendlies and present a clear, physical identity centered on wingbacks delivering crosses into the box.
The Czechs will look to exploit aerial strength through Patrik Schick, 6’6″ striking partner Tomás Chorý and Tomás Soucek arriving in the box. Set-pieces are another major outlet, and Kim Min-jae will be asked to deal with that threat. Pavel Šulc, who had a breakout season with Lyon and recorded 21 goal contributions in Ligue 1, and Lukáš Provod are tasked with creative duties.
Neither side is viewed among tournament favourites, but a group that also includes co-hosts Mexico and South Africa offers both teams a realistic path to the knockout stage. The nations have met in three friendlies previously, with each side recording a win.
