South Korea's national football team has slipped another notch in the competition to reach the round of 32. Australia and Paraguay split the points, allowing Paraguay to finish third in Group D with a better record than Korea.
Paraguay drew 0-0 with Australia in the Group D third match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North and Central America, held Thursday (Korea time) at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium in California.
With the result, both Paraguay and Australia finished with one win, one draw and one loss for four points. Despite the equal points, Australia (two goals scored, two conceded) took second place in the group on goal difference, while Paraguay (two scored, four conceded) finished third. Australia will play the runner-up of Group G in the round of 32 on July 4 at Dallas Stadium in the United States.
In this tournament, the top two teams from each of the 12 groups, totaling 24 teams, advance to the round of 32, along with the eight best third-place teams. Having earned four points, Paraguay has a strong chance of finishing among the top eight third-place teams. With the draw between Paraguay and Australia, Korea, which finished third in Group A with one win and two losses (three points, three goals scored, three conceded), dropped to sixth in the competition among third-place teams.
In the other Group D match held at the same time at the Los Angeles Stadium in California, the United States lost 2-3 to Turkey. The United States, which had already clinched first place in the group, finished the group stage with two wins and one loss (six points), and will compete for a place in the round of 16 against Group B's third-place team, Bosnia and Herzegovina, on July 2 at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium. Turkey, which had already been eliminated, recorded its first victory (three points, one win and two losses), ending its campaign on a high note.
