The South Korea national football team have appeared 15 times at the Asian Cup. They have failed to qualify for the finals on three occasions, in 1968, 1976 and 1992. South Korea won the inaugural edition of the tournament in 1956, held in Hong Kong, and successfully defended the title on home soil in 1960. In addition, the team finished as runners-up on four occasions.

Competitive record

AFC Asian Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Pld W D L F A Squad Pld W D L F A
British Hong Kong 1956Champions321096 Squad 440091
South Korea 1960Champions330091 Squad Qualified as hosts
Israel 1964Third place 3[lower-alpha 1] 10224 Squad Direct entry
Pahlavi Iran 1968Did not qualify 411294
1972Runners-up512276 Squad Direct entry
Pahlavi Iran 1976Did not qualify 420233
Kuwait 1980Runners-up6411126 Squad 3300101
Singapore 1984Group stage402213 Squad 4310130
Qatar 1988Runners-up6510113 Squad 3[lower-alpha 1]11153
Japan 1992Did not qualify 2[lower-alpha 1]10172
United Arab Emirates 1996Quarter-finals4112711 Squad 3300170
Lebanon 2000Third place631296 Squad 3300190
China 2004Quarter-finals421194 Squad 6402304
Indonesia Malaysia Vietnam 2007Third place614133 Squad 6321155
Qatar 2011Third place6420137 Squad Directly qualified
Australia 2015Runners-up650182 Squad Directly qualified
United Arab Emirates 2019Quarter-finals540162 Squad 8800270
Qatar 2023Qualified 6510221
Saudi Arabia 2027To be determined To be determined
TotalChampions673616151066415/1956416918624
  1. 1 2 3 South Korea played with their "B" team.

Details

1956 (Hong Kong)

South Koreans are inaugural champions of the Asian Cup. South Korea had unfavorable schedule that required them to meet their largest rivals Israel two days after playing their first match, but defeated Israel.

6 September 1956 South Korea  2–2  Hong Kong Government Stadium, Hong Kong
19:00
  • Kim Ji-sung 45'
  • Choi Kwang-seok 62'
  • Tang Yee Kit 10'
  • Ko Po Keung 39'
 Attendance: 30,000
8 September 1956 Israel  1–2  South Korea Government Stadium, Hong Kong
19:00
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Trương Văn Ky (South Vietnam)
15 September 1956 South Korea  5–3  South Vietnam Government Stadium, Hong Kong
19:00
  • Trải Văn Đào 20'
  • Lê Hữu Đức 51', 63'
Final table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 South Korea 321096+35
 Israel 320165+14
 Hong Kong 302167–12
 South Vietnam 301269–31

1960 (South Korea)

South Korea won their second consecutive title, and a South Korean forward Cho Yoon-ok became the top goalscorer. However, South Korean players received fake medals, and returned the medals to the Korean FA. The KFA gave real medals to their families in 2019.

14 October 1960 South Korea  5–1  South Vietnam Hyochang Stadium, Seoul
15:15
Nguyễn Văn Tu 70' Attendance: 30,000
17 October 1960 South Korea  3–0  Israel Hyochang Stadium, Seoul
15:00
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Yozo Yokoyama (Japan)
Final table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 South Korea 330091+86
 Israel 320164+24
 Republic of China 31022202
 South Vietnam 3003212–100

1964 (Israel)

The 1964 Asian Cup was held when South Korea had to play the Olympic qualifier against South Vietnam. The Korean FA sent the reserve team to the competition.

27 May 1964 South Korea B South Korea 0–2  India Municipal Stadium, Haifa
16:30
Attendance: 7,000
Referee: Davoud Nassiri (Iran)
31 May 1964 South Korea B South Korea 1–0  Hong Kong Hebrew University Stadium, Jerusalem
16:30 Bae Keum-soo 74' Attendance: 7,000
Referee: Pisit Ngarampanich (Thailand)
3 June 1964 South Korea B South Korea 1–2  Israel Ramat Gan Stadium, Ramat Gan
16:00 Huh Yoon-jung 79'
Attendance: 35,000
Referee: Davoud Nassiri (Iran)
Final table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
 Israel 330051+46
 India 320153+24
South Korea South Korea B 310224−22
 Hong Kong 300315–40

1972 (Thailand)

7 May Group allocation match South Korea  0–0
(2–4 p)		  Iraq National Stadium, Bangkok
Penalties
12 May 1972 Group B South Korea  1–2  Kuwait National Stadium, Bangkok
  • Al-Asfoor 24'
  • Duraiham 74'
Group B table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 210153+22 Advance to knockout stage
 Khmer Republic 210154+12
 Kuwait 210125–32
17 May 1972 Semi-finals South Korea  1–1 (a.e.t.)
(2–1 p)		  Thailand National Stadium, Bangkok
  • Niwatana 97'
19 May 1972 Final Iran  2–1 (a.e.t.)  South Korea National Stadium, Bangkok
Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Sivapalan Kathiravale (Malaysia)

1980 (Kuwait)

South Korea won all matches from the second match to the semi-finals including a match against the host Kuwait. However, they lost in the final where they met Kuwait again. Their 18-year-old striker Choi Soon-ho became the youngest scoring champion in Asian Cup history.

16 September 1980 Group B Malaysia  1–1  South Korea Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City
18:30 Abdul Ali 90' Choi Soon-ho 68' Attendance: 5,000
19 September 1980 Group B Qatar  0–2  South Korea Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City
18:30
21 September 1980 Group B South Korea  3–0  Kuwait Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City
16:30
Attendance: 15,000
24 September 1980 Group B South Korea  4–1  United Arab Emirates Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City
18:30
Chombi 79'
Group B table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 4310102+87 Advance to knockout stage
 Kuwait 421185+35
 Malaysia 41215504
 Qatar 411238–53
 United Arab Emirates 401339–61
28 September 1980 Semi-finals South Korea  2–1  North Korea Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City
19:30 Chung Hae-won 80', 89' Park Jong-hon 19' (pen.)
30 September 1980 Final Kuwait  3–0  South Korea Sabah Al-Salem Stadium, Kuwait City
18:30
Attendance: 25,000

1984 (Singapore)

South Koreans left their worst result in the 1984 tournament. They got no victory and made only one goal.

2 December 1984 Group A South Korea  1–1  Saudi Arabia National Stadium, Singapore
19:00 Lee Tae-ho 51' Abdullah 90'
5 December 1984 Group A Kuwait  0–0  South Korea National Stadium, Singapore
19:00
7 December 1984 Group A South Korea  0–1  Syria National Stadium, Singapore
21:00 Hassan 13'
10 December 1984 Group A Qatar  1–0  South Korea National Stadium, Singapore
21:00 Salman 69'
Group A table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 Saudi Arabia 422042+26 Advance to knockout stage
 Kuwait 421142+25
 Qatar 41213304
 Syria 411235–23
 South Korea 402213−22

1988 (Qatar)

South Koreans got a chance to win their third title again after winning all matches until the semi-finals, but they lost the final to Saudi Arabia after the penalty shoot-out. This was the third time for South Korea to finish as runners-up. Their new star player Kim Joo-sung was named the Most Valuable Player.

6 December 1988 Group A South Korea  2–0  Japan Qatar SC Stadium, Doha
15:00
Report Referee: Salah Mohammed (Iraq)
9 December 1988 Group A Qatar  2–3  South Korea Qatar SC Stadium, Doha
17:00 Salman 47' (pen.), 80' (pen.) Report
Referee: George Courtney (England)
11 December 1988 Group A South Korea  3–0  Iran Al-Ahly Stadium, Doha
17:00
Report Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Neji Jouini (Tunisia)
Group A table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 440092+78 Advance to knockout stage
 Iran 42113305
 Qatar 420276+14
 United Arab Emirates 410324–22
 Japan 401306–61
14 December 1988 Semi-finals South Korea  2–1 (a.e.t.)  China Qatar SC Stadium, Doha
16:00 Lee Tae-ho 93', 103' Report Mai Chao 100' Attendance: 1,000
Referee: Vincent Mauro (United States)

1996 (United Arab Emirates)

Before the 1996 tournament, the Korean FA appointed Park Jong-hwan as the new manager. Park was evaluated as the greatest South Korean manager at the time by leading Ilhwa Chunma to three consecutive K League titles, but he disappointed his country in the competition. South Korea finished their group stage in third place, showing shaky start. In the quarter-finals, South Korea held a 2–1 lead against Iran at half-time, but they conceded five goals in the second half including Ali Daei's four goals. After the disaster, Park resigned as manager, and a defender Hong Myung-bo was suspected of slowdown.

4 December 1996 Group A United Arab Emirates  1–1  South Korea Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
16:45 K. Saad 40' Report Hwang Sun-hong 9' Attendance: 35,000
Referee: Pirom Un-Prasert (Thailand)
7 December 1996 Group A South Korea  4-2  Indonesia Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
19:00
Report
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)
10 December 1996 Group A Kuwait  2–0  South Korea Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
19:00
Report Attendance: 3,000
Referee: Mohd Nazri Abdullah (Malaysia)
Group A table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 United Arab Emirates 321063+37 Advance to knockout stage
 Kuwait 311165+14
 South Korea 31115504
 Indonesia 301248–41
16 December 1996 Quarter-finals South Korea  2–6  Iran Al-Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
16:45
Report
Attendance: 19,000
Referee: Jamal Al Sharif (Syria)

2000 (Lebanon)

13 October 2000 Group B South Korea  2–2  China International Olympic Stadium, Tripoli
17:05
Report
Attendance: 1,000
Referee: Omer Al-Mehannah (Saudi Arabia)
16 October 2000 Group B South Korea  0–1  Kuwait International Olympic Stadium, Tripoli
19:45 Report Al-Huwaidi 43' Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Brian Hall (United States)
19 October 2000 Group B South Korea  3–0  Indonesia Sports City Stadium, Beirut
19:35 Lee Dong-gook 30', 76', 90+1' Report Attendance: 500
Referee: Toru Kamikawa (Japan)
Group B table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 China 312062+45 Advance to knockout stage
 Kuwait 312010+15
 South Korea 311153+24
 Indonesia 301207–71
23 October 2000 Quarter-finals Iran  1–2 (a.e.t.)  South Korea International Olympic Stadium, Tripoli
16:45 Bagheri 71' Report
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Ali Bujsaim (UAE)
26 October 2000 Semi-finals South Korea  1–2  Saudi Arabia Sports City Stadium, Beirut
16:45 Lee Dong-gook 90+1' Report Al-Meshal 76', 80' Attendance: 7,000
Referee: Saad Kamil Al-Fadhli (Kuwait)
29 October 2000 Third place match South Korea  1–0  China Sports City Stadium, Beirut
17:05 Lee Dong-gook 76' Report Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Nabil Ayad (Lebanon)

2004 (China)

South Korea reached the semi-finals in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, but their performance wasn't continued after Guus Hiddink left them. They suffered shock defeats to Oman and Vietnam in the qualification. They were eliminated by the quarter-final defeat to Iran after conceding Ali Karimi's hat-trick and an own goal.

19 July 2004 Group B South Korea  0–0  Jordan Shandong Sports Center, Jinan
18:30 Report Attendance: 26,000
Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)
27 July 2004 Group B South Korea  4–0  Kuwait Shandong Sports Center, Jinan
19:00
Report Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Shamsul Maidin (Singapore)
Group B table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 321060+67 Advance to knockout stage
 Jordan 312020+25
 Kuwait 310237–43
 United Arab Emirates 301215–41
31 July 2004 Quarter-finals South Korea  3–4  Iran Shandong Sports Center, Jinan
21:00
Report
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Saad Kamil Al-Fadhli (Kuwait)

2007 (Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam)

After excluding three Premier League players (Park Ji-sung, Lee Young-pyo and Seol Ki-hyeon) due to their injuries, South Korea had difficulty again in the Asian Cup. Furthermore, some players including the captain Lee Woon-jae were criticised by fans for visiting a hostess bar in the middle of the group stage. South Korea's outfield players made only three goals during the competition. However, Lee led his team to third place by keeping four clean sheets and winning two penalty shoot-outs.

11 July 2007 Group D South Korea  1–1  Saudi Arabia Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta
19:35 UTC+7 Choi Sung-kuk 66' Report Y. Al-Qahtani 77' (pen.) Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Mark Shield (Australia)
15 July 2007 Group D Bahrain  2–1  South Korea Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta
19:35 UTC+7
Report Kim Do-heon 4' Attendance: 9,000
Referee: Sun Baojie (China)
18 July 2007 Group D Indonesia  0–1  South Korea Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, Jakarta
17:20 UTC+7 Report Kim Jung-woo 34' Attendance: 88,000
Referee: Mark Shield (Australia)
Group D table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 Saudi Arabia 321072+57 Advance to knockout stage
 South Korea 31113304
 Indonesia 310234–13
 Bahrain 310237–43

2011 (Qatar)

After beating Iran in extra time of the quarter-final match, South Korea once again played extra time in the semi-finals against Japan. In this extra time, Hajime Hosogai who moved into the penalty area before Keisuke Honda kicked a penalty scored a controversial goal from the rebound. South Korea scored the equaliser after the misfortune, but lost on penalties.

10 January 2011 Group C South Korea  2–1  Bahrain Al Gharafa Stadium, Doha
19:15 Koo Ja-cheol 40', 52' Report Aaish 85' (pen.) Attendance: 6,669
Referee: Abdullah Al Hilali (Oman)
14 January 2011 Group C Australia  1–1  South Korea Al Gharafa Stadium, Doha
16:15 Jedinak 62' Report Koo Ja-cheol 24' Attendance: 15,526
Referee: Abdulrahman Abdou (Qatar)
18 January 2011 Group C South Korea  4–1  India Al Gharafa Stadium, Doha
16:15
Report Chhetri 12' (pen.) Attendance: 11,366
Referee: Khalil Al Ghamdi (Saudi Arabia)
Group C table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 Australia 321061+57 Advance to knockout stage
 South Korea 321073+47
 Bahrain 310265+13
 India 3003313–100
22 January 2011 Quarter-finals Iran  0–1 (a.e.t.)  South Korea Qatar SC Stadium, Doha
19:25 Report Yoon Bit-garam 105' Attendance: 7,111
Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan)
25 January 2011 Semi-finals Japan  2–2 (a.e.t.)
(3–0 p)		  South Korea Al-Gharafa Stadium, Doha
16:25
Report
Attendance: 16,171
Referee: Khalil Al Ghamdi (Saudi Arabia)
Penalties
28 January 2011 Third place match Uzbekistan  2–3  South Korea Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium, Doha
18:00 Geynrikh 45' (pen.), 53' Report
Attendance: 8,199
Referee: Abdul Malik Bashir (Singapore)

2015 (Australia)

Under the leadership of manager Uli Stielike, the South Korean players underperformed in the first two matches against Oman and Kuwait.[1][2] They won both matches, but expressed dissatisfaction with Stielike, who then handed over command to assistant manager Shin Tae-yong for the rest of the tournament. Goalkeeper Kim Jin-hyeon then kept a clean sheet in every match until the final, as the team eliminated Uzbekistan and Iraq in the quarter-finals and semi-finals, respectively. Their opponent in the final was Australia, which they had already beaten 1–0 in the group stage. However, South Korea lost the final 2–1 after extra time, evoking the 1980 final between them and Kuwait.

10 January 2015 Group A South Korea  1–0  Oman Canberra Stadium, Canberra
16:00 UTC+11 Cho Young-cheol 45+2' Report Attendance: 12,552
Referee: Peter O'Leary (New Zealand)
13 January 2015 Group A Kuwait  0–1  South Korea Canberra Stadium, Canberra
18:00 UTC+11 Report Nam Tae-hee 36' Attendance: 8,795
Referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)
17 January 2015 Group A Australia  0–1  South Korea Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
20:00 UTC+11 Report Lee Jeong-hyeop 32' Attendance: 48,513
Referee: Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)
Group A table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 330030+39 Advance to knockout stage
 Australia 320182+66
 Oman 310215–43
 Kuwait 300316–50
26 January 2015 Semi-finals South Korea  2–0  Iraq Stadium Australia, Sydney
20:00 UTC+11
Report Attendance: 36,053
Referee: Ryuji Sato (Japan)
31 January 2015 Final South Korea  1–2 (a.e.t.)  Australia Stadium Australia, Sydney
20:00 UTC+11 Son Heung-min 90+1' Report
Attendance: 76,385
Referee: Alireza Faghani (Iran)

2019 (United Arab Emirates)

7 January 2019 (2019-01-07) Group C South Korea  1–0  Philippines Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai
17:30
Report Attendance: 3,185
Referee: Nawaf Shukralla (Bahrain)
11 January 2019 (2019-01-11) Group C Kyrgyzstan  0–1  South Korea Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain
20:00 Report
Attendance: 4,893
Referee: Khamis Al-Marri (Qatar)
16 January 2019 (2019-01-16) Group C South Korea  2–0  China Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi
17:30
Report Attendance: 13,579
Referee: Abdulrahman Al-Jassim (Qatar)
Group C table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 330040+49 Advance to knockout stage
 China 320153+26
 Kyrgyzstan 31024403
 Philippines 300317–60
22 January 2019 (2019-01-22) Round of 16 South Korea  2–1 (a.e.t.)  Bahrain Rashid Stadium, Dubai
17:00
Report
Attendance: 7,658
Referee: Ryuji Sato (Japan)
25 January 2019 (2019-01-25) Quarter-finals South Korea  0–1  Qatar Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
17:00 Report
Attendance: 13,791
Referee: Ravshan Irmatov (Uzbekistan)

2023 (Qatar)

15 January 2024 Group E South Korea  3–1  Bahrain Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Al Rayyan
14:30 UTC+3
Report
  • Al-Hashsash 51'
 Attendance: 8,388
Referee: Ma Ning (China)
20 January 2024 Group E Jordan  v  South Korea Al Thumama Stadium, Doha
14:30 UTC+3 Report
25 January 2024 Group E South Korea  v  Malaysia Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah
14:30 UTC+3 Report
Group E table
Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
 South Korea 00000000 Advance to knockout stage
 Bahrain 00000000
 Jordan 00000000
 Malaysia 00000000

See also

References

  1. ↑ Duerden, John (10 January 2015). "Once again, South Korea fail to impress in Asian Cup game". ESPN. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  2. ↑ Migliaccio, Val (13 January 2015). "Asian Cup 2015: South Korea see off plucky Kuwait to maintain unbeaten record". Fox Sports. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
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