The South Korean national football team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, plays a decisive match against Japan for the gold medal in the East Asian Cup.
The South Korean team will compete in the final third match of the 2025 East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) at 7:24 p.m. on the 15th at Yongin Mir Stadium. Korea, Japan, China, and Hong Kong participate in this tournament, which is held in a round-robin format to determine the champion, and both Korea and Japan have secured two victories each, maintaining their lead. The champion will be decided in the match between Korea and Japan.
In terms of goal difference, Korea has won 3-0 against China and 2-0 against Hong Kong (goal difference +5), but it is in second place behind Japan, which achieved victories of 6-1 and 2-0 against Hong Kong and China, respectively (goal difference +7). If the final match ends in a draw, Japan will win based on goal difference, so Korea must secure a victory. If they defeat Japan this time, it will mark their sixth overall championship since the tournament's first held in 2019.
Defending champion Japan aims for consecutive titles in the East Asian Cup. Korea won the tournaments in 2015 and 2017, achieving the first consecutive wins in the tournament's history, and continued their success by winning the championship again in 2019, completing a three-peat.
In the head-to-head record against Japan, Korea leads with 42 wins, 23 draws, and 16 losses; however, in the last 10 matches, Korea has only managed 3 wins, 3 draws, and 4 losses, and is currently on a two-match losing streak. During the tenure of former head coach Paulo Bento, they suffered consecutive 0-3 defeats in the friendly match in Yokohama in March 2021 and the East Asian Cup showdown in Nagoya in July 2022.
In this match, veteran forward Joo Min-kyu (Daejeon) will take the lead. He scored a goal in the first match against China and did not participate in the second match. Midfielder Lee Dong-gyeong (Gimcheon) will also join.
Jo Hyun-woo (Ulsan) stated before the training held the previous day at Seongnam Sports Complex, "As always, I prepare the same way. If I play as the coach wants, I am confident and believe that we can certainly win," adding, "I will do my best to ensure we finish with a score of '0' to achieve even better results."