Korea Republic national football team

Korea Republic
Nickname(s) Taegeuk Jeonsa (Taegeuk Warriors), Tigers of Asia, Reds
Association Korea Football Association
Confederation AFC (Asia)
Head coach Flag of South Korea Huh Jung-Moo
Captain Park Ji-Sung
Most caps Hong Myung-Bo (135)
Top scorer Cha Bum-kun (55)
FIFA code KOR
FIFA ranking 53
Highest FIFA ranking 17 (December 1998)
Lowest FIFA ranking 56 (February 1996)
Elo ranking 38
Highest Elo ranking 15 (Sep 1980, Jun 2002)
Lowest Elo ranking 59 (August 1967)
Team colours Team colours Team colours
Team colours
Team colours
Home colours
Team colours Team colours Team colours
Team colours
Team colours
Away colours
First international
Flag of South Korea South Korea 5 - 3 Mexico Flag of Mexico
(London, England; August 2, 1948)
Biggest win
Flag of South Korea South Korea 16 - 0 Nepal Flag of Nepal
(Incheon, South Korea; September 29, 2003)
Biggest defeat
Flag of Sweden Sweden 12 - 0 South Korea Flag of South Korea
(London, England; August 5, 1948)
World Cup
Appearances 7 (First in 1954)
Best result Fourth place, 2002
AFC Asian Cup
Appearances 11 (First in 1956)
Best result Winners, 1956 and 1960
Confederations Cup
Appearances 1 (First in 2001)
Best result 1st round, 2001

The Korea Republic national football team represents the Republic of Korea in international football competitions. The team, also known as South Korea, is recognized as Korea Republic by FIFA. It has often been considered Asia's most successful national team, since it made its debut at the 1948 Summer Olympics. South Korea has participated in seven World Cup final tournament, and became the first Asian nation to reach the semi-finals, doing so when it co-hosted the 2002 tournament. It currently holds the best FIFA World Cup record among Asian teams.[1]

Contents

History

Since the 1950s, South Korea has emerged as a major football power in Asia, winning several prestigious Asian football championships, including the first two Asian Cup tournaments. The South Korean national team has also played in six consecutive World Cup finals from 1986, making a total of seven World Cup finals in all. In 1954 World Cup, they played 2 games with Hungary and Turkey. They lost to Hungary 0-9 and 0-7 to Turkey. It's been hypothesized that the players failed to adapt to the cool playing conditions.

The 2002 FIFA World Cup, hosted jointly with Japan, was a sign of the great progress made in South Korean football. Led by Dutch coach Guus Hiddink and assistant coach Pim Verbeek, South Korea defeated Italy and Spain to become the first Asian national team to reach the World Cup semi-finals.

On June 8, 2005, South Korea qualified for their seventh World Cup by beating Kuwait 4-0 in Kuwait City.

The enthusiasm of the red-clad supporters, known as the "Red Devils", also made a huge impression on viewers worldwide. After the team success, football had an explosion of popularity in the country, where the game had traditionally been less popular than other games, such as baseball, formerly the most popular spectator sport in the country.

During the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, South Korea achieved their first World Cup victory outside of Asia by beating Togo 2-1 in Frankfurt on June 13. Against France, the team managed a late equalizer from Park Ji-Sung to end up with a 1-1 tie and this put them tied with Switzerland on top of their group. However, they were knocked out of the tournament after a very controversial 2-0 loss against Switzerland, while France advanced with a 2-0 win against Togo.

On November 19, 2008, South Korea beat Saudi Arabia 2-0 away from home in the 2010 World Cup Qualifying Match.


Forthcoming matches

Date Opponent Result Score Venue Competition
September 10, 2008 Flag of North Korea.svg Korea DPR 1:1 (0:0) 64' Hong Yong-Jo (PRK)
69' Ki Sung-Yong (KOR)
Shanghai, China 2010 World Cup Qualifier
October 15, 2008 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates 4:1 (2:0) 20' Lee Keun-Ho (KOR)
26' Park Ji-Sung (KOR)
72' Ismail Al Hammadi (UAE)
80' Lee Keun-Ho (KOR)
89' Kwak Tae-Hwi (KOR)
Seoul, Korea 2010 World Cup Qualifier
November 19, 2008 Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia 2:0 (0:0) 76' Lee Keun-Ho (KOR)
92' Park Chu-Young (KOR)
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 2010 World Cup Qualifier
February 2, 2009 Flag of Iran.svg Iran Tehran, Iran 2010 World Cup Qualifier
April 1, 2009 Flag of North Korea.svg Korea DPR Seoul, Korea 2010 World Cup Qualifier
June 6, 2009 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi, UAE 2010 World Cup Qualifier
June 10, 2009 Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia Seoul, Korea 2010 World Cup Qualifier
June 17, 2009 Flag of Iran.svg Iran Seoul, Korea 2010 World Cup Qualifier

Summer Olympics record

Year Round GP W D* L GS GA
Flag of the United Kingdom 1948 Quarterfinals 2 1 0 1 5 15
Flag of Japan 1964 First Round 3 0 0 3 1 20
Flag of South Korea 1988 First Round 3 0 2 1 1 2
Flag of Spain 1992 First Round 3 0 3 0 2 2
Flag of the United States 1996 First Round 3 1 1 1 2 2
Flag of Australia 2000 First Round 3 2 0 1 2 3
Flag of Greece 2004 Quarterfinals 4 1 2 1 8 8
Flag of the People's Republic of China 2008 First Round 3 1 1 1 2 4
Flag of the United Kingdom 2012
Total 8/16 24 6 9 9 23 56
*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
**Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

World Cup record

Year Round Position GP W D* L GS GA
Flag of Switzerland 1954 Round 1 16 2 0 0 2 0 16
Flag of Mexico 1986 Round 1 20 3 0 1 2 4 7
Flag of Italy 1990 Round 1 22 3 0 0 3 1 6
Flag of the United States 1994 Round 1 20 3 0 2 1 4 5
Flag of France1998 Round 1 30 3 0 1 2 2 9
Flag of South KoreaFlag of Japan 2002 Fourth Place 4 7 3 2 2 8 6
Flag of Germany 2006 Round 1 17 3 1 1 1 3 4
Flag of South Africa 2010
Flag of Brazil 2014
Total 7/18 24 4 7 13 22 53
*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
**Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

Asian Cup record

Year Round GP W D* L GS GA
Flag of Hong Kong 1956 Champions 3 2 1 0 9 6
Flag of South Korea 1960 Champions 3 3 0 0 9 1
Flag of Israel 1964 Third Place 3 1 0 2 2 4
Flag of Iran 1968 Did not qualify - - - - - -
Flag of Thailand 1972 Second Place 5 1 2 2 7 6
Flag of Iran 1976 Did not qualify - - - - - -
Flag of Kuwait 1980 Second Place 6 4 1 1 12 6
Flag of Singapore 1984 Round 1 4 0 2 2 1 3
Flag of Qatar 1988 Second Place 6 5 1 0 11 3
Flag of Japan1992 Did not qualify - - - - - -
Flag of the United Arab Emirates1996 Quarterfinals 4 1 1 2 7 11
Flag of Lebanon2000 Third Place 6 3 1 2 9 6
Flag of the People's Republic of China2004 Quarterfinals 4 2 1 1 9 4
Flag of IndonesiaFlag of MalaysiaFlag of ThailandFlag of Vietnam2007 Third Place 6 1 4 1 3 3
Flag of Qatar2011 Qualified
Total 11/14 50 23 14 13 79 53
*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
**Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

East Asian Cup record

Year Round GP W D* L GS GA
Flag of Japan 2003 Champions 3 2 1 0 4 1
Flag of South Korea 2005 Fourth Place 3 0 2 1 1 2
Flag of the People's Republic of China 2008 Champions 3 1 2 0 5 4
*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
**Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

Current squad

The following squad is for WCQ vs UAE 15 October, 2008.

No. Pos. Player DoB (Age) Caps Goals Club
0 GK Lee Woon-Jae 36 September 1973 0 0 Flag of South Korea Suwon Samsung
1 GK Kim Young-Kwang 28 June 1983 12 -9 Flag of South Korea Ulsan Hyundai
18 GK Jung Sung-Ryong 4 January 1985 9 -5 Flag of South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa
2 DF Oh Beom-Suk 9 July 1984 19 0 Flag of Russia Krylia Sovetov Samara
4 DF Cho Yong-Hyung 3 November 1983 7 0 Flag of South Korea Jeju United
5 DF Kim Dong-Jin 29 January 1982 48 2 Flag of Russia FC Zenit Saint Petersburg
12 DF Lee Young-Pyo 23 April 1977 97 5 Flag of Germany Borussia Dortmund
13 DF Kim Chi-Woo 11 November 1983 15 0 Flag of South Korea FC Seoul
14 DF Kang Min-Soo 14 February 1986 17 0 Flag of South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai
16 DF Kwak Tae-Hwi 8 July 1981 5 2 Flag of South Korea Chunnam Dragons
3 MF Cho Won-Hee 17 April 1983 23 1 Flag of South Korea Suwon Samsung
7 MF Park Ji-Sung 25 February 1981 72 9 Flag of England Manchester United
8 MF Kim Jung-Woo 9 May 1982 34 1 Flag of South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa
17 MF Lee Chung-Yong 2 july 1988 4 1 Flag of South Korea FC Seoul
19 MF Song Jung-Hyun 28 May 1976 0 0 Flag of South Korea Chunnam Dragons
23 MF Ki Sung-Yong 24 January 1989 2 1 Flag of South Korea FC Seoul
24 MF Kim Hyung-Bum 1 January 1984 0 0 Flag of South Korea Jeonbuk Hyundai
9 FW Shin Young-Rok 27 March 1987 1 0 Flag of South Korea Suwon Samsung
10 FW Choi Sung-Kuk 8 February 1983 23 2 Flag of South Korea Seongnam Ilhwa
11 FW Lee Keun-Ho 11 April 1985 12 5 Flag of South Korea Daegu FC
20 FW Jung Sung-Hun 4 July 1979 0 0 Flag of South Korea Busan I'Park
22 FW Seo Dong-Hyun 5 June 1985 2 0 Flag of South Korea Suwon Samsung

Recent call ups

The following players have also been called up to the South Korea squad in 2008.

Goalkeepers
Name Date of birth Club Caps (goals) Most Recent Call up
Kim Byung-Ji April 8, 1970 Flag of South Korea FC Seoul 62 (0) v. Chile, 30 January, 2008
Defenders
Name Date of birth Club Caps (goals) Most Recent Call up
Park Won-Jae May 28, 1984 Flag of South Korea Pohang Steelers v. Turkmenistan, 6 February, 2008
Hwang Jae-Won April 13, 1981 Flag of South Korea Pohang Steelers 2 (0) v. Turkmenistan, 6 February, 2008
Midfielders
Name Date of birth Club Caps (goals) Most Recent Call up
Han Tae-You March 31, 1981 Flag of South Korea Gwangju Sangmu 1 (0) v. North Korea, 26 March, 2008
Lee Jong-Min September 1, 1983 Flag of South Korea FC Seoul v. North Korea, 26 March, 2008
Lee Kwan-Woo February 25, 1978 Flag of South Korea Suwon Samsung 13 (1) v. Turkmenistan, 6 February, 2008
Lee Dong-Sik March 15, 1979 Flag of South Korea Jeju United 0 (0) v. Chile, 30 January, 2008
Strikers
Name Date of birth Club Caps (goals) Most Recent Call up
Cho Jae-Jin July 9, 1981 Flag of South Korea Chonbuk Hyundai 37 (10) v. North Korea, 26 March, 2008
Yeom Ki-Hoon March 30, 1983 Flag of South Korea Ulsan Hyundai 15 (3) v. North Korea, 26 March, 2008

Korea in the 2010 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers, Group B

Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
Flag of South Korea.svg Korea Republic 3 2 1 0 7 2 +5 7
Flag of Iran.svg Iran 3 1 2 0 4 3 +1 5
Flag of North Korea.svg Korea DPR 3 1 1 1 4 4 0 4
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia 3 1 1 1 3 4 −1 4
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates 4 0 1 3 4 9 −5 1
  Flag of Iran Flag of North Korea Flag of South Korea Flag of Saudi Arabia Flag of the United Arab Emirates
Iran Flag of Iran.svg 2 – 1 11 Feb 28 Mar 10 Jun
Korea DPR Flag of North Korea.svg 6 Jun 1 – 1 11 Feb 28 Mar
Korea Republic Flag of South Korea.svg 17 Jun 1 Apr 10 Jun 4 – 1
Saudi Arabia Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg 1 – 1 17 Jun 0 – 2 1 Apr
United Arab Emirates Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg 1 – 1 1 – 2 6 Jun 1 – 2

2008-09-10 Korea DPR Flag of North Korea.svg 1 – 1 Flag of South Korea.svg Korea Republic

2008-10-15 Korea Republic Flag of South Korea.svg 4 – 1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates

2008-11-19 Saudi Arabia Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg 0 – 2 Flag of South Korea.svg Korea Republic

2009-02-11 Iran Flag of Iran.svg v Flag of South Korea.svg Korea Republic

2009-04-01 Korea Republic Flag of South Korea.svg v Flag of North Korea.svg Korea DPR

2009-06-06 United Arab Emirates Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg v Flag of South Korea.svg Korea Republic

2009-06-10 Korea Republic Flag of South Korea.svg v Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia

2009-06-17 Korea Republic Flag of South Korea.svg v Flag of Iran.svg Iran

National Team performance against various opponents

vs. Europe

(Flag of France.svg France, Flag of England.svg England, Flag of Germany.svg Germany, Flag of Turkey.svg Turkey Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia)

W L D W % GF GA GD
13 8 7 46.4 32 26 6

vs. Asia

(Flag of Japan.svg Japan, Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia, Flag of Iran.svg Iran, Flag of Australia.svg Australia)

W L D W % GF GA GD
31 12 12 56.3

vs. the Americas

(Flag of Guatemala.svg Guatemala, Flag of the United States.svg United States, Flag of Costa Rica.svg Costa Rica, Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil, Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina)

W L D W % GF GA GD
3 11 5 15.8

vs. Africa

(Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.svg Côte d'Ivoire, Flag of Senegal.svg Senegal, Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana, Flag of Egypt.svg Egypt)

W L D W % GF GA GD
3 3 2 37.5

Cumulative Record

W L D W % GF GA GD
52 34 28 47.4

National team record

Further information: Category:Korea Republic national football team results

Notable Matches

Date Opponent Result Score1 Venue Competition
February 6, 2007 Flag of Greece.svg Greece W 1–0 London, England Friendly
June 18, 2006 Flag of France.svg France D 1–1 Leipzig, Germany 2006 World Cup Group Match
June 13, 2006 Flag of Togo.svg Togo W 2–1 Frankfurt, Germany 2006 World Cup Group Match
February 15, 2006 Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico W 1–0 Los Angeles, United States Friendly
January 29, 2006 Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia W 2–0 Hong Kong, China 2006 Carlsberg Cup
November 12, 2005 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden D 2–2 Seoul, Korea Friendly
October 12, 2005 Flag of Iran.svg Iran W 2–0 Seoul, Korea Friendly
January 22, 2005 Flag of Sweden.svg Sweden D 1–1 Carson, United States Friendly
December 19, 2004 Flag of Germany.svg Germany W 3–1 Busan, Korea Republic Friendly
June 5, 2004 Flag of Turkey.svg Turkey W 2–1 Daegu, Korea Friendly
September 29, 2003 Flag of Nepal.svg Nepal W 16–0 Incheon, Korea 2004 Asian Cup qualification
June 22, 2002 Flag of Spain.svg Spain W 0–0 (AET, 5 PK 3) Gwangju, Korea 2002 World Cup Round of Eight
June 18, 2002 Flag of Italy.svg Italy W 2–1 (AET) Daejeon, Korea 2002 World Cup Round of Sixteen
June 14, 2002 Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal W 1–0 Incheon, Korea 2002 World Cup Group Match
June 4, 2002 Flag of Poland.svg Poland W 2–0 Busan, Korea 2002 World Cup Group Match
June 1, 2001 Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico W 2–1 Seoul, Korea 2001 Confederations Cup
June 3, 2001 Flag of Australia.svg Australia W 1–0 Seoul, Korea 2001 Confederations Cup
October 23, 2000 Flag of Iran.svg Iran W 2–1 Beirut, Lebanon 2000 Asian Cup Quarterfinals
March 28, 1999 Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil W 1–0 Seoul, Korea Republic Friendly
September 28, 1997 Flag of Japan.svg Japan W 2–1 Tokyo, Japan 1998 World Cup Qualifiers
June 14, 1997 Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana W 3–0 Seoul, Korea 1997 Korea Cup Group Match
November 23, 1996 Flag of Colombia.svg Colombia W 4–1 Seoul, Korea Friendly
June 17, 1994 Flag of Spain.svg Spain D 2–2 Los Angeles, United States 1994 World Cup Group Match
February 10, 1993 Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana W 3–1 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 1993 Merdeka Tournament Match
December 16, 1984 Flag of Chile.svg Chile W 3–1 Singapore, Singapore Friendly
March 7, 1954 Flag of Japan.svg Japan W 5–1 Tokyo, Japan 1954 World Cup Qualification
August 2, 1948 Flag of Mexico.svg Mexico W 5–3 London, England 1948 Summer Olympic Games

Korea Republic World Cup captains

# Player World Cup Played As A Captain Caps
1 Park Kyu-chong Switzerland 1954 unknown
2 Park Chang-Seon Mexico 1986 unknown
3 Chung Yong-Hwan Italy 1990 unknown
4 Choi In-Young USA 1994 unknown
5 Choi Young-Il France 1998 55
6 Hong Myung-Bo Korea/Japan 2002 135
7 Lee Woon-Jae Germany 2006 100

Current and Former Coaches

Name W L D Win % Start End
Flag of South Korea Huh Jung-Moo 16 2 9 59.3 December 7, 2007
Flag of the Netherlands Pim Verbeek 8 6 3 47.5 July 1, 2006 July 25, 2007
Flag of the Netherlands Dick Advocaat 9 5 5 47.3 October 1, 2005 June 30, 2006
Flag of the Netherlands Jo Bonfrere 11 6 8 44.0 June 24, 2004 August 23, 2005
Flag of South Korea Park Seong-Hwa (tem.) 1 1 2 25.0 April 20, 2004 June 15, 2004
Flag of Portugal Humberto Coelho 9 6 3 50.0 February 3, 2003 April 19, 2004
Flag of South Korea Kim Ho-Gon (tem.) 0 0 1 00.0 November 18, 2002 December 20, 2002
Flag of the Netherlands Guus Hiddink 16 11 11 42.1 January 1, 2001 June 30, 2002
Flag of South Korea Huh Jung-Moo October 14, 1998 November 13, 2000
Flag of South Korea Kim Pyung-Seok (tem.) June 22, 1998 June 25, 1998
Flag of South Korea Cha Bum-Kun January 8, 1997 June 21, 1998
Flag of South Korea Park Jong-Hwan February 15, 1996 January 7, 1997
Flag of South Korea Go Jae-Wook October 20, 1995 October 30, 1995
Flag of South Korea Jeong Byeong-Tak September 16, 1995 September 30, 1995
Flag of South Korea Huh Jung-Moo August 1, 1995 August 12, 1995
Flag of South Korea Park Jong-Hwan April 26, 1995 July 31, 1995
Flag of Russia Anatoliy Byshovets July 24, 1994 February 26, 1995
Flag of South Korea Kim Ho July 8, 1992 July 23, 1994
Flag of South Korea Go Jae-Wook May 22, 1991 July 27, 1991
Flag of South Korea Park Jong-Hwan August 9, 1990 October 23, 1991
Flag of South Korea Lee Cha-Man July 3, 1990 August 8, 1990
Flag of South Korea Lee Hoi-Taek October 6, 1988 July 2, 1990
Flag of South Korea Kim Jung-Nam July 6, 1988 October 5, 1988
Flag of South Korea Park Jong-Hwan November 20, 1986 July 5, 1988
Flag of South Korea Kim Jung-Nam March 19, 1985 November 19, 1986
Flag of South Korea Mun Jeong-Sik July 3, 1984 March 18, 1985
Flag of South Korea Park Jong-Hwan August 23, 1983 July 2, 1984
Flag of South Korea Cho Yoon-Ohk January 29, 1983 August 22, 1983
Flag of South Korea Kim Jung-Nam October 31, 1982 January 28, 1983
Flag of South Korea Choi Eun-Taek June 19, 1982 October 30, 1982
Flag of South Korea Kim Jung-Nam (tem.) May 4, 1980 June 18, 1982
Flag of South Korea Jang Kyung-Hwan March 29, 1979 May 3, 1980
Flag of South Korea Ham Heung-Cheol March 2, 1978 March 28, 1979
Flag of South Korea Kim Jung-Nam (tem.) September 17, 1977 December 18, 1977
Flag of South Korea Choi Jung-Min January 1, 1977 September 16, 1977
Flag of South Korea Mun Jeong-Sik May 14, 1976 December 31, 1976
Flag of South Korea Ham Heung-Cheol November 17, 1974 May 13, 1976
Flag of South Korea Choi Young-Keun January 1974 November 17, 1974
Flag of South Korea Min Byung-Dae December 21, 1972 November 20, 1973
Flag of South Korea Ham Heung-Cheol June 16, 1972 December 20, 1972
Flag of South Korea Park Byung-Seok December 7, 1971 June 15, 1972
Flag of South Korea Hong Deok-Young November 1971
Flag of South Korea Han Hong-Ki February 13, 1970 October 6, 1971
Flag of South Korea Kang Jun-Young November 1969 December 1969
Flag of South Korea Kim Yong-Sik January 1969 October 1969
Flag of South Korea Park Il-Gap August 1968 December 1968
Flag of South Korea Jang Kyung-Hwan July 1967 November 1967
Flag of South Korea Min Byung-Dae June 1966 December 1966
Flag of South Korea Hong Keon-Pyo August 1965
Flag of South Korea Jeong Kook-Jin September 1964
Flag of South Korea Min Byung-Dae March 1962
Flag of South Korea Lee Jong-Gap October 1961
Flag of South Korea Lee Yoo-Hyung March 1961
Flag of South Korea Wi Hye-Deok October 1960
Flag of South Korea Kim Yong-Sik March 1960
Flag of South Korea Jeong Kook-Jin July 1959
Flag of South Korea Kim Keun-Chan April 1958
Flag of South Korea Lee Yoo-Hyung August 1956
Flag of South Korea Park Jung-Hwi December 1955
Flag of South Korea Kim Yong-Sik June 1954
Flag of South Korea Lee Yoo-Hyung March 1954
Flag of South Korea Kim Hwa-Jip April 1952 February 1954
Flag of South Korea Park Jung-Hwi December 1948 April 1950
Flag of South Korea Lee Young-Min June 1948
Flag of South Korea Park Jung-Hwi May 1948

Notes

  1. "Korean derby takes centre stage", Fifa.com (2008-01-20). Retrieved on 2008-02-07. 

See also

  • Be the Reds!
  • Red Devil
  • List of Korea-related topics
  • List of national football teams

External links

Titles

Preceded by
Inaugural Champion
Asian Champions
1956 (First title)
1960 (Second title)
Succeeded by
1964 Israel Flag of Israel.svg