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| A match warm-up match between South Korea and Bolivia held at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 14th. Coach Hong Myung-bo is waiting for the start of the game. Daejeon = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.11.14/ |
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Korea's first history is about to be written.
South Korea's A national team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, won 2-0 in a friendly match against Bolivia at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 14th.
The results of the November A match were more important than ever. This is because the draw for the 2026 FIFA World North American World Cup will be held in December based on the FIFA rankings that reflect the results after the November A match. The reason why South Korea's results were important was that South Korea was likely to be included in the second port of the draw for the first time in the FIFA ranking-based draw, which began with the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
The current draw will be allocated ports according to FIFA ranking order. The host country will be placed in the first port and then the rest of the seats will be placed in FIFA ranking order. 12 countries are assigned per port. The U.S., Mexico and Canada, the hosts of this World Cup, were included in the first port, so they had to be in the top 23 FIFA rankings to be included in the second port. This is because Canada is ranked 28th.
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| A match warm-up match between South Korea and Bolivia held at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 14th. As Lee Jae-sung is replaced, head coach Hong Myung-bo is being encouraged. Daejeon = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.11.14/ |
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In the rankings released in October, South Korea was 22nd, a two-port berth, but it was unsettling. This is because the gap with Ecuador, ranked 23rd, and Austria, ranked 24th, was very narrow. Korea scored 1593.93 points, followed closely by Ecuador with 1589.72 points and Austria with 1589.98 points. Australia, ranked 25th with 1584.02 points, also had room to chase South Korea depending on the situation.
Bolivia and Ghana, which South Korea will face in November, are ranked 70th, so they could have fallen below 23rd if they lost both games. But that is now significantly less likely.
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| A match warm-up match between South Korea and Bolivia held at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 14th. South Korea won 2-0. Cho Kyu-sung is sharing his joy with director Hong Myung-bo. Daejeon = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.11.14/ |
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Football data SNS 'Football Meat Data' released the expected World Cup draw port reflecting the results of one A match in November on the 16th. South Korea, which won against Bolivia, remained in 22nd place with about 1597 points and was included in the second port. 23rd place came as Austria, which won against Cyprus, pushed Ecuador. Ecuador lost to 25th place in a draw with Canada. Australia's defeat by Venezuela widened the gap with South Korea.
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| Photo=Football Meat Data |
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Unless there is an all-time catastrophe in the match against Ghana, two A matches in November, South Korea is not expected to be pushed out of the 23rd place. This is because the difference in ranking points with Ecuador has already widened by more than eight points.
Even if the worst comes out and falls to 24th place, there is a possibility of entering two ports. This is because Italy, ranked ninth, is very likely to advance to the World Cup European qualifying playoffs. The countries that advance through the playoffs are expected to be allocated four ports.
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| A match warm-up match between South Korea and Bolivia held at Daejeon World Cup Stadium on the 14th. Son Heung-min is making a high five with coach Hong Myung-bo as he is replaced in the second half. Daejeon = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.11.14/ |
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However, as expected by Football Meat Data, there is a prospect that countries that advanced through the playoffs can also divide their ports in order of ranking, so it is the best scenario for South Korea to somehow maintain its 23rd place. Since the match luck can vary greatly depending on whether two ports are included or not, entering the port is very important for the success of the World Cup.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
