'Humiliating draw with Yemen': South Korea U17 finishes second in group after falling to Vietnam, advances to Asian Cup quarterfinals... U17 World Cup qualification secured

*This content was translated by AI.

The South Korea U17 national football team failed to secure a win against Yemen. Nevertheless, they advanced to the quarterfinals of the AFC Asian Cup, securing their spot in the 2026 FIFA U17 World Cup, which will be held in Qatar this November.

The U17 national team, led by head coach Kim Hyun-jun, drew 0-0 with Yemen in the Group C final match of the 2026 AFC U17 Asian Cup, held on the 14th (Korea time) at King Abdullah Sports City Training Stadium (Pitch B) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Yemen is a team with a FIFA ranking of only 149th based on the senior national team standards.

On this day, South Korea held a slight edge over the lower-ranked Yemen in ball possession at 54.9%-45.1%, with 12 shots to 8 and 3 effective shots each, showing little difference. Ultimately, South Korea failed to score a single goal and drew 0-0 with Yemen. The all-time record between the U-17 national teams stands at one win and three draws for South Korea.

Earlier, after drawing 1-1 with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in their opening group match and defeating Vietnam 4-1, South Korea finished with 5 points (1 win, 2 draws), securing second place in the group behind Vietnam (2 wins, 1 loss, 6 points) to advance to the quarterfinals. They finished just one point ahead of third-place Yemen (1 win, 1 draw, 1 loss, 4 points). Had South Korea suffered a shocking defeat against Yemen instead of the humiliating draw, they could have been eliminated from the group stage.

Fortunately, by advancing to the quarterfinals, South Korea successfully secured qualification for the 2026 FIFA U17 World Cup finals. The U17 World Cup, previously held every two years, has been held annually since last year. Similarly, the U17 Asian Cup, which also serves as the Asian qualifiers, has been held annually since last year. South Korea's qualification for the U17 World Cup finals marks four consecutive appearances.

Kim Hyun-jun's team, which advanced to the quarterfinals as the group runner-up, will face Uzbekistan, the Group D winner and "defending champion," in the quarterfinals. Uzbekistan defeated India and Australia 3-0 and 2-0, respectively. If they defeat Uzbekistan, they will meet the winner of the Japan-Tajikistan match in the semifinals. In the other quarterfinal bracket, Saudi Arabia will face China, and Vietnam will face Australia.

South Korea aims to reclaim the Asian title for the first time in 24 years since their victory at the 2002 UAE tournament. They reached the final in 2008, 2014, and 2023 but finished as runners-up each time. At last year's tournament held in Saudi Arabia, they reached the semifinals but were eliminated after losing to Saudi Arabia in a penalty shootout.

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*This content was translated by AI.