The South Korean national soccer team secured a 2-1 victory over the Czech Republic in their opening match of the 2026 North America World Cup, rising to 22nd place in the FIFA rankings.
On June 12, local time, South Korea faced the Czech Republic at Guadalajara Stadium in Sapopan, Mexico. After conceding the first goal in the 59th minute, South Korea equalized with a goal from Hwang In-beom in the 67th minute and took the lead with a decisive goal from Oh Hyun-kyu in the 80th minute.
This victory earned South Korea an additional 20.92 FIFA ranking points, bringing their total to 1612.55 points and allowing them to jump three spots from 25th to 22nd.
South Korea surpassed Turkey, which is now ranked 23rd with 1605.73 points, Ecuador in 24th with 1598.52 points, and Austria in 25th with 1597.40 points.
This marks the largest ranking increase for South Korea in this World Cup. The host nation, the United States, moved up two spots to 15th place with 1688.53 points, while Mexico climbed one spot to 13th with 1700.98 points.
Additionally, FIFA has updated its ranking system to reflect match results in real-time, moving away from monthly announcements since April.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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