The South Korea U-20 football team is set to compete in the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup, which will be held in Chile starting in September. South Korea, as a top seed, drew relatively easier teams in their group.

Coached by Lee Chang-won, the South Korea U-20 football team was placed in Group B along with Ukraine (Pot 2), Paraguay (Pot 4), and Panama (Pot 3) as a result of the group stage draw conducted in Santiago, Chile, on the 30th (Korea time).

South Korea will face Ukraine on Sept. 27, Paraguay on Sept. 30, and Panama on Oct. 3, according to local time.

Having finished as runners-up (2019), fourth place (2023), and in the Round of 16 (2017) in the last three tournaments, South Korea emerged as a top seed in this tournament's draw.

The team, led by Lee Chang-ho, managed to avoid strong teams in the same seed, resulting in a relatively easier group assignment.

South Korea's best performance in the U-20 World Cup was as runners-up in the 2019 tournament in Poland. In the most recent tournament in Argentina in 2023, they finished in fourth place. Including the Round of 16 record from the tournament held in 2017, South Korea has successfully reached the knockout stage in three consecutive tournaments. The 2021 tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.

Earlier, South Korea secured a place in the World Cup finals by reaching the semifinals at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-20 Asian Cup held in China last February, which granted World Cup berths to the top four teams.

The most challenging opponent is Ukraine, which has previously defeated South Korea to claim the top spot. In 2019, South Korea was the runner-up in this tournament, losing 3-1 in the final to Ukraine, which was then coached by Jeong Jeong-yong.

South Korea previously faced Paraguay in the Round of 16 in the 2009 tournament and won 3-0. This will be the first matchup against Panama at the Under-20 level.

The U-20 World Cup, featuring 24 countries, will take place in Chile from Sept. 27 to Oct. 19. After competing in group stages consisting of six groups with four teams each, the top two teams from each group and the four best third-placed teams will advance to the knockout stage for a total of 16 teams.

Coach Lee Chang-won commented on the outcome of the draw, saying, "I feel relieved to have avoided traditional powerhouses, but there are many variables at this age level. Ukraine is the champion of the 2019 tournament, and Paraguay and Panama, being neighboring countries, will likely have an advantage in local adaptation over us." He added, "The most important thing is not the opponents we face but how well we prepare ourselves."

He continued, "There are areas I believe we need to develop since the Asian Cup. While we won’t have many scheduled training camps, we will prepare step by step for the World Cup, including the upcoming international friendly match in Egypt. After the Egypt schedule, I also plan to negotiate player call-ups with European clubs."

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