China also advanced to the semifinals... South Korea's U17 team eliminated from the Asian Cup after losing to Uzbekistan in the quarterfinals

*This content was translated by AI.

The South Korea U17 national football team was eliminated from the quarterfinals of the 2026 AFC U17 Asian Cup.

Led by coach Kim Hyun-jun, South Korea drew 2-2 with Uzbekistan in the quarterfinal match held on the 17th (Korean time) at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, before losing 3-5 in a penalty shootout and being eliminated.

This marks the first time since the group stage elimination in the 2016 tournament that South Korea has failed to reach the semifinals of the AFC U17 Asian Cup. South Korea reached the semifinals in the 2018 and 2025 tournaments and finished as runners-up in the 2023 tournament. The 2020 tournament was canceled due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the group stage, South Korea finished second in Group C with one win and two draws (five points), failing to secure a decisive result against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Yemen, and advanced to the quarterfinals behind Vietnam (six points).

Although South Korea secured a spot in the 2026 FIFA U17 World Cup finals, which is awarded to the quarterfinalists, their first championship challenge in 24 years since the 2002 tournament was thwarted in the first round of the knockout stage.

South Korea broke the deadlock with an early goal by Moon Ji-hwan (FC Seoul U18) in the 22nd minute of the first half, but conceded an equalizer due to a goalkeeper error in the 41st minute, and then allowed a go-ahead goal in stoppage time, leaving them in a desperate situation.

Aiming for an equalizer, South Korea tied the match 2-2 with a dramatic goal by Ahn Sun-hyeon (Pohang Steelers U18) in the 43rd minute of the second half. According to tournament rules, the match went directly to a penalty shootout without extra time. All five Uzbek kickers successfully converted their penalties, while South Korea's fourth kicker, Park Kyung-hoon (Suwon Samsung U18), missed his shot, leaving them with regret.

With South Korea's elimination, the semifinal matchups for this tournament were set as Uzbekistan vs. Japan and China vs. Australia. Japan defeated Tajikistan 5-0 in the quarterfinals, while China beat Saudi Arabia 3-1 and Australia defeated Vietnam 3-0.

China reached the semifinals of the AFC U17 Asian Cup for the first time since the 2004 tournament (when they won the championship), a span of 22 years.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.