The Republic of Korea is one of the most consistent teams in Asia and has qualified for every World Cup since 1986. Coach Hong Myung-bo’s team relies on intense team play and boasts one of Asia’s best attacking players, Son Heung-min. The 2002 semifinal remains the historic highlight—they aim to go far again in 2026.

Coach Hong Myung-bo has named three goalkeepers to the Taeguk Warriors squad: Jo Hyeon-woo, Kim Seung-gyu, and Song Bum-keun. All three play—or most recently played—in the K League 1 or in Japan, underscoring this generation’s strong roots in Asian club soccer.

Jo Hyeon-woo, 34, is simply the best goalkeeper South Korea has ever produced. Since his breakthrough with Daegu FC in 2017, he has been named to the K League Best 11 eight times in a row and became the first goalkeeper in sixteen years to be voted League MVP. Since 2020, he has played for Ulsan HD, with whom he won the K League 1 three times in a row (2022, 2023, 2024) as well as the 2020 AFC Champions League. Hong Myung-bo himself—now the national team coach—once described him as the best goalkeeper in Asia. At the club level, his younger teammates simply describe him as an unparalleled role model.

Internationally, he represents South Korea with ease: He is the clear number one and heads into his first World Cup tournament as the most reliable last line of defense.

Kim Seung-gyu, 35, is the most experienced of the three goalkeepers on the international stage, with over 65 caps. His career has taken him through the K League, the Japanese J1 League (Vissel Kobe, Kashiwa Reysol), three seasons in Saudi Arabia with Al-Shabab, and, since the summer of 2025, to FC Tokyo. He stood between the posts at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, making him the only one of the trio with actual World Cup experience. At 35, he is clearly the second choice behind Jo, but he brings exactly the kind of international tournament experience that is invaluable in a pinch.

Song Bum-keun, 28 years old and 6'4" tall, is one of the most decorated goalkeepers in Korean club soccer. Since making his professional debut with Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in 2018, he has won the K League 1 five times, the Korean FA Cup three times, and took home gold at the 2018 Asian Games. After two seasons with Shonan Bellmare in Japan, he returned to Jeonbuk in 2025 and promptly led the club to another championship title that same year as the starting goalkeeper. He has made few appearances at the international level so far—the World Cup is his biggest tournament and a well-deserved reward for his consistent top-level performances in the K League.