Goals from Hwang In-beom and Oh Hyeon-gyu powered South Korea to a come-from-behind 2-1 victory over Czechia in their opening Group A clash at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Despite dominating much of a goalless first half at Estadio Guadalajara, South Korea fell behind shortly before the hour mark when Ladislav Krejči’s powerful header broke the deadlock.

However, the Tigers of Asia responded in determined fashion. Hwang In-beom restored parity with a composed finish and later turned provider, delivering a precise cross that substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu converted past Matej Kovar to complete the turnaround.

South Korea will next face co-hosts Mexico, who won their opening game in dramatic fashion, while Czechia will try to collect their first points against South Africa, missing Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane due to suspension.

Hong Myung-bo’s side made an energetic start against a Czech team that had required penalty shootouts in both playoff rounds to reach the finals. Early on, an accurate through ball from Lee Kang-in found Lee Jae-sung, who spun past Štěpán Chaloupek and squared the ball for Son Heung-min, only for Robin Hranać to deflect the shot behind for a corner.

Lee Kang-in continued to be South Korea’s most lively presence in the opening stages, forcing Kovar into a save with a long-range strike after linking up with Bayern Munich defender Kim Min-jae.

As the first half progressed, Czechia began to settle. A poor touch by Lee Ki-hyuk allowed Lukas Provod to surge down the right flank and cross for Patrick Schick, but the Bayer Leverkusen striker’s tight angle meant Kim Min-jae could turn the ball behind for a corner.

Miroslav Koubek’s men grew more assertive as Provod again threatened shortly after the half-hour mark, threading a pass to Jaroslav Zeleny whose cross for Schick was cleared by Paik Seung-ho.

South Korea nearly punished Czechia’s wastefulness before the break, as Son Heung-min came close twice — his first long-range attempt flying just over the bar, and his second shot slicing wide of the near post after cutting inside from the right.

After halftime, South Korea turned up the pressure again. Kovar produced an excellent double save, first denying Hwang In-beom’s low drive following a one-two with Kang-in, then recovering quickly to block Lee Jae-sung’s rebound attempt.

But Czechia struck first in the 59th minute through a trademark long throw from former West Ham defender Vladimir Coufal. Now playing for Hoffenheim in the Bundesliga, Coufal picked out captain Ladislav Krejči, whose thunderous header flew past Kim Seung-gyu to give the Repre the lead.

The advantage lasted less than ten minutes. South Korea maintained their habit of scoring in the second half of World Cup games, as Kang-in threaded a neat pass through the Czech defence for Hwang In-beom, who cleverly chipped Kovar to find the far corner and equalise.

Czechia briefly thought they had regained the lead when West Ham’s Tomáš Soucek headed home from a free-kick, but the flag was raised for offside against the midfielder after Michal Sadilek’s delivery.

Moments later, South Korea struck decisively. Paik Seung-ho lifted a superb ball over the Czech backline for Hwang In-beom, who delivered an inch-perfect cross that substitute Oh Hyeon-gyu slotted past Kovar to make it 2-1 with ten minutes remaining.

The closing stages were tense. Coufal, already with an assist to his name, launched another long throw in the 82nd minute that caused chaos in the box before Adam Hlozek’s shot was dramatically saved by Kim Seung-gyu.

With this result, South Korea sit second in Group A, behind leaders Mexico after their thrilling win over South Africa. Czechia will aim to bounce back when they face the Bafana Bafana in their next fixture.