"South Korea was the best possible draw in history," Japan also shocked: "32-team qualification probability of 94% shattered... 'Hope has been shattered into pieces'"

*This content was translated by AI.

The South Korean national football team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo (57), accepted the shocking result of being eliminated from the group stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North, Central America and the Caribbean.

On the 28th, Japanese media outlet Daily Sports reported, "South Korea was unexpectedly eliminated in the first round. This is a nightmare for them. They had the best possible draw in history with a 94% probability of reaching the Round of 32, but all hope has been shattered."

Earlier, Uzbekistan suffered a 3-1 comeback defeat against the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the final third group stage match of Group K held at the Atlanta Stadium in the United States. The match between Colombia and Portugal in the same group ended in a 0-0 draw, with Colombia securing first place in Group K with two wins and one draw (7 points). Portugal finished second in the group with one win and two draws (5 points), while the Democratic Republic of the Congo took third place with one win, one draw, and one loss (4 points). The Democratic Republic of the Congo advanced to the Round of 32 by reaching the top of third place with 4 points.

This also automatically confirmed South Korea's elimination. South Korea finished with one win and two losses (3 points) and a goal difference of -1. To reach the Round of 32, Uzbekistan had to avoid losing to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. If Uzbekistan had won by a narrow margin or drawn, South Korea could have hoped to advance to the Round of 32 based on the results of Group J.

However, Uzbekistan could not maintain its 1-0 lead in the first half. Although they were fortunate to have a goal by the Democratic Republic of the Congo disallowed due to video review in the first half, they conceded a penalty kick in the 23rd minute of the second half, followed by additional goals in the 33rd minute and during stoppage time, ultimately suffering a comeback defeat.

Japan also seemed quite shocked by South Korea's elimination from the group stage, which was once called the "golden generation." Daily Sports stated, "We couldn't believe it. In the group draw held last December, South Korea was drawn against host nation Mexico, South Africa, and the European playoff winner (Czech Republic). At the time, South Korean media welcomed the fact that they avoided European powerhouses and South American teams like Brazil and Argentina, saying, 'There has never been such a sweet draw in World Cup history.'"

It further added, "Initially, the probability of South Korea reaching the Round of 32, as published by a statistics site, was 94%. However, after defeating Czech Republic in the first match, that probability dropped rapidly. They conceded a goal and lost to Mexico due to a collision between the goalkeeper and a defender. In the match against South Africa, they failed to deliver a performance and lost."

It also noted that Japan's results partially influenced South Korea's group stage elimination. Daily Sports explained, "Hope was completely shattered due to Japan's draw against Sweden and Germany's defeat against Ecuador. As of the 27th, three groups remained, and South Korea was pushed down to eighth place, the threshold for elimination among third-place teams, leaving them on the brink of a cliff."

The contrasting result, with Japan being the first of the nine Asian teams to confirm their qualification for the Round of 32, makes the situation even more bitter. On the 26th, Japan drew 1-1 with Sweden in the third group stage match of Group F, securing second place in Group F with one win and two draws (5 points), behind the Netherlands (7 points), and confirmed their advancement to the Round of 32. They will face the world's strongest team, Brazil, on the 30th at 2 p.m.

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*This content was translated by AI.