Men's, women's football teams advance to semifinals

The Korea Times - Sep 25, 2026

NAGOYA, Japan — South Korea advanced to the semifinals in both men's and women's football tournaments at the Asian Games on Friday. The men's squad, coached by Lee Min-sung, defeated Vietnam 4-0 in the quarterfinals at Nagoya City Mizuho Park Rugby Field in Nagoya, central Japan. The under-23 Taegeuk Warriors are now two wins away from delivering the country's fourth consecutive gold medal in men's football. In Wednesday's semifinals at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, 140 kilometers west of Nagoya, South Korea will meet the winner of the China-Thailand quarterfinal duel set for Saturday. Grasshopper forward Lee Young-jun, who joined the team Monday due to his commitment with the Swiss club, got the start and scored a brace -- in the 15th minute and then in the 81st minute. Center back Kim Ji-soo had the team's second goal in the 77th minute, with Kim Myeong-jun capping off the win with the fourth goal in the 88th minute. Kim has now scored in all three South Korean matches so far. In the women's quarterfinals, South Korea beat Uzbekistan 6-3 at Nagai Stadium behind Yun Su-jeong's hat trick. The T

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