Mexico defeated South Korea and advanced to the Round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup ahead of schedule
On June 19, the Mexican national team defeated South Korea in their second Group A match of the 2026 World Cup, securing their spot in the round of 16. The victory also secured first place in the group for Mexico.
The first half was evenly matched, with both teams playing aggressively. In the 16th minute, South Korea’s captain Son Heung-min skillfully fired a shot at the hosts’ goal, forcing Mexico’s center back to make an acrobatic save on the goal line. However, the goal would not have counted anyway—Son was offside.
This isn’t the first time Javier Aguirre’s team has caught their opponents in an offside trap. Toward the end of the first half, the Koreans had more possession but were unable to capitalize on their chances.
The turning point came at the start of the second half. In the 50th minute, South Korean goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu made a mistake in his own penalty area—and gifted the ball to the opponents. Luis Romo took advantage of this and opened the scoring.
That goal was all it took for the entire game. Despite occasional threats to their own goal, the “Aztecs” held on to their narrow lead until the final whistle.
With this result, the Mexican national team secured first place in Group A and a spot in the knockout stage of the World Cup on home soil even before the end of the second round of the group stage. South Korea, meanwhile, remained in second place in Group A.
As a reminder, Ghana’s head coach, Carlos Queiroz, became the oldest coach to win a World Cup match.
The second round of the group stage is underway at the 2026 World Cup. Mexico could be the first team to secure a spot in the Round of 16.
