As the 2026 North and Central America FIFA World Cup approaches, it is highly likely that 'Captain' Son Heung-min (33, Tottenham) will participate in his final World Cup, and attention is already focused on whether he will be the main player in creating a new history.

The South Korean national football team, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, secured a victory against Iraq with a score of 2-0 in the 9th match of Group B for the third round of Asia qualifiers for the 2026 North and Central America FIFA World Cup at the Basra International Stadium in Basra, Iraq, on the 6th (Korea time).

In the 2026 North and Central America World Cup, South Korean football will attempt to reach the quarterfinals for the first time in history.

Korea achieved the semifinals miracle in the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup. Since then, it reached the round of 16 in its first away tournament in the 2010 South Africa World Cup and also succeeded in the second round of 16 in the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

For now, head coach Hong Myung-bo's primary goal is to reach the round of 16. If accomplished, Korea will achieve the milestone of reaching the round of 16 for two consecutive years following the 2022 Qatar World Cup.

The North and Central America World Cup is expected to be Son Heung-min's 'last dance' in the World Cup. The tournament will kick off on June 11, 2026, and run until July 19, during which Son, born on July 8, 1992, will celebrate his 34th birthday.

By 2030, Son Heung-min will be 38 years old, which makes it likely that the upcoming tournament could be his final stage. This also means that it will be the last World Cup for the 'golden generation' that led to the round of 16 in the 2022 Qatar World Cup. The lineup of Son, Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), Hwang Hee-chan (Wolverhampton), and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) is considered a powerful combination that is unlikely to be seen again in South Korean football history.

There is also interest in whether Son Heung-min's scoring streak will continue. He scored his first World Cup goal in the group stage match against Algeria (2-4 loss) in the 2014 Brazil World Cup. He also scored in the group stage matches against Mexico (1-2 loss) and Germany (2-0 win) in the 2018 Russia World Cup, totaling 3 goals in the tournament.

In the third group stage match against Portugal (2-1 win) in the 2022 Qatar World Cup, he assisted Hwang Hee-chan's comeback winning goal, marking his third consecutive tournament with an attacking point.

As the first South Korean player to score in two consecutive World Cup matches, Son Heung-min is currently tied for the most World Cup goals by a South Korean player (3 goals) along with Ahn Jung-hwan and Park Ji-sung (both retired). If he scores just one more goal in the North and Central America World Cup, he will stand alone at the top.

This tournament will expand from 32 participating countries to 48. If Korea passes the group stage, the tournament will start from the round of 32. As the schedule becomes denser, managing stamina and injuries has become even more important.

There is interest in whether Son Heung-min will set a new record for most goals in World Cup history and whether he will also write history by leading South Korea's first quarterfinal appearance in an away tournament.

[OSEN]