Thapelo Maseko
Thapelo Maseko

MONTERREY, Mexico — South Africa have beaten South Korea 1-0 to book their place in the 2026 World Cup knockout stage. Thapelo Maseko scored the winner for the South Africans, who will play in the knockouts for the first time in their history.

Thapelo Maseko gave South Africa the lead in the 63rd minute, a goal that proved to be the only one of the match and one of the biggest in his nation's footballing history.

They finished second in Group A behind co-hosts Mexico and will face Canada at SoFi Stadium in the round of 32 on Sunday.

A Tough Night for Son

It was a tough evening for Son Heung-min. He was left out of South Korea's starting lineup and then had little influence on the game when he was introduced at halftime. Maseko, meanwhile, had the best day of his career. He caused South Korea problems throughout and scored one of the biggest goals in his nation's history.

South Korea should have done enough to progress as one of the eight best third-place teams, but a place in the next round is not guaranteed.

South Africa are the second African nation to clinch qualification into the round of 32 at this World Cup, joining 2022 semifinalists Morocco. The two sides could face each other in the round of 16 if South Africa defeat Canada and Morocco defeat the Group F winner, likely the Netherlands. It seems unlikely — but stranger things have happened.

What Might Have Been for South Korea's Fans

Spare a thought for the massive South Korean population in the Los Angeles metro area, over 300,000 strong. Many of them are strong football supporters, even more so since the captain of their national team, Son Heung-min, arrived in the city last year to play his club football at MLS side LAFC. It seemed almost a given that South Korea would get a result Wednesday night and be through to the round of 32 as the Group A runner-up, where they would have faced Group B runner-up Canada at SoFi Stadium just outside of Los Angeles. The crowd there would have surely been overwhelmingly behind South Korea in that case.

If there's a consolation prize, it's that The Athletic's current forecasted bracket gives South Korea an 89% chance of advancing to play a round of 32 match in Seattle, which also has a sizable Korean population.

A Voting Snapshot Reflecting Pre-Match Expectations

The Athletic's Daily Pick'em feature, which had collected more than 22,000 votes ahead of the match, showed just how heavily South Korea had been favored to win or at least avoid defeat, with the vast majority of fan predictions leaning toward a South Korean result rather than the South African upset that ultimately unfolded.

A Landmark Achievement for South African Football

South Africa's victory represents a watershed moment for a national team program that had never previously advanced beyond the World Cup group stage in any of its prior tournament appearances. Maseko's goal not only secured the result but cemented his place in the country's footballing history, delivering the kind of moment that South African fans have waited generations to witness on the sport's biggest stage.

A Group A That Produced Genuine Drama

South Africa's path to the knockout stage came against the backdrop of a tightly contested Group A, where the final round of fixtures carried significant consequences for both teams' tournament fates. Finishing second behind co-hosts Mexico, South Africa now advances to face a Canada side that itself made history earlier in the tournament as one of the co-host nations competing in the knockout rounds for the first time.

With South Africa now set to face Canada at SoFi Stadium on Sunday in the round of 32, attention turns to whether the South Africans can continue their historic run deeper into the tournament. For South Korea, the wait continues to see whether their group-stage performance was enough to secure one of the eight available third-place qualifying spots — a determination that will depend on results from the remaining groups still to conclude, with The Athletic's forecast currently giving the team a strong chance of advancing to a round of 32 match in Seattle regardless of the disappointment of missing out on a more geographically convenient matchup in Los Angeles.

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