South Korea's national football team, led by Hong Myung-bo, posed for a team photo and steeled their resolve for the 2026 World Cup finals before traveling to the battleground city of Guadalajara, Mexico.
The squad took the group photo Thursday on the grounds of the Zions Bank Training Center in Herriman, near Salt Lake City, Utah, with the majestic Rocky Mountains as a backdrop.
Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain) was positioned at the center of the photo. He posed behind Hong, who sat in the center of the front row.
Son Heung-min (LAFC) sat second from the left in the front row. Goalkeeper Yoon Ki-wook (Seoul) and midfielder Kang Sang-yoon (Jeonbuk), who joined as "training partners," also took part in the shoot.
Cho Wi-je (Jeonbuk), who came to the Salt Lake City pre-camp as a training partner but was selected as a replacement after Cho Yu-min (Sharjah) dropped out with an injury, and Lee Ki-hyuk (Gangwon), a surprise pick for the final roster, were also among the 28 featured in the photo.
The Zions Bank Training Center is where Hong's squad has been pouring out sweat over the past two weeks or so.
To adapt to the high-altitude environment of Guadalajara, the battleground and base-camp location, the team set up a pre-camp and trained in Salt Lake City, at an elevation of 1,460 meters.
After training here and winning two friendly matches, South Korea will fly to Guadalajara on a chartered plane.
After acclimating to local conditions and refining their tactics in Guadalajara, South Korea will play their fateful Group Stage opening match against the Czech Republic at Guadalajara Stadium at 11 a.m. Korea time on the 12th.
