South Korea national team captain Son Heung-min (LA FC) is set to appear at his fourth World Cup.
South Korea head coach Hong Myung-bo announced the 26-man squad for the 2026 World Cup, including Son, at a press conference held at KT Onmadang in Jongno, Seoul, on Nov. 16.
As expected, the final roster includes Asia's top football star Son Heung-min along with Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) and Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), all of whom play in Europe's top leagues.
Son will challenge for his fourth World Cup title following the 2014 Brazil, 2018 Russia and 2022 Qatar tournaments.
This World Cup is likely to be Son's last. Born in 1992, Son will be 38 by the time the next World Cup is held in 2030. Son has scored three goals at the World Cup, tied with Ahn Jung-hwan and Park Ji-sung as the all-time leading Korean scorers at the tournament. One more goal would put him alone at the top. Son has also made 142 appearances in A-matches, the most by any Korean player, and his 54 goals leave him just four behind former coach Cha Bum-kun's record of 58.
Jens Castrop (Borussia Mönchengladbach) becomes the first foreign-born mixed-heritage player to represent South Korea on the "stage of dreams." Lee Ki-hyeok (Gangwon FC), a K-Leaguer with just one A-match appearance, was a "surprise selection."
Although not included in the main squad, midfielder Kang Sang-yoon and defender Cho Wi-je (both Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), along with goalkeeper Yoon Ki-wook (FC Seoul), were named as reserve players and will train alongside the national team. Kang and Cho will join through the pre-camp in Salt Lake City, while Yoon will train with the team through the World Cup finals.
Having finalized the squad, Hong's team will board a flight to the pre-camp site in Salt Lake City, U.S., on the afternoon of Nov. 18. Players based abroad will join the squad on site.
The team will first focus on adjusting to high altitude, with friendly matches against Trinidad and Tobago at 10 a.m. Korean time on Nov. 31 and against El Salvador at 10 a.m. on June 4. After the El Salvador match, the team will travel to Guadalajara, Mexico, on June 5 to enter its World Cup base camp. South Korea will play its first group-stage match against the Czech Republic at 11 a.m. on June 12.
◇2026 World Cup Final Squad (26 Players)
△GK = Cho Hyun-woo (Ulsan HD), Kim Seung-gyu (FC Tokyo), Song Bum-keun (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors)
△DF = Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich), Cho Yu-min (Sharjah), Lee Han-beom (FC Midtjylland), Kim Tae-hyeon (Kashima Antlers), Park Jin-seop (Zhejiang FC), Lee Ki-hyeok (Gangwon FC), Lee Tae-seok (Austria Wien), Seol Young-woo (Crvena Zvezda), Jens Castrop (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Kim Moon-hwan (Daejeon Hana Citizen)
△MF = Yang Hyun-jun (Celtic), Baek Seung-ho (Birmingham City), Hwang In-beom (Feyenoord), Kim Jin-gyu (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors), Bae Jun-ho (Stoke City), Eom Ji-sung (Swansea City), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Lee Dong-gyeong (Ulsan HD), Lee Jae-sung (Mainz), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain)
△FW = Oh Hyeon-gyu (Beşiktaş), Son Heung-min (LA FC), Cho Gue-sung (FC Midtjylland)
