Mexico beats South Korea, becomes first team into World Cup round of 32

Luis Romo’s second-half strike sent Mexico past South Korea 1-0 in Guadalajara and made Javier Aguirre’s side the first team to secure a place in the World Cup round of 32. The result also gave Mexico the top spot in Group A and turned a tense night at Estadio Guadalajara into a landmark moment for the tournament hosts.

Mexico handled the pressure with six points from its first two matches, a start that changes the conversation around the squad. After failing to advance from the group stage at the 2022 World Cup, Aguirre’s team has now converted home-continent energy into a position of control, with a guaranteed knockout match on June 30 in Mexico City.

The decisive goal came after a defensive error from South Korea goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu, with Romo finishing the chance to break open a match that had been tight throughout. Mexico’s supporters were uneasy through a stubborn first half, then erupted when the goal stood up and the final minutes passed with South Korea pushing hard for an equalizer.

That late pressure underlined how narrow the margin was, even as Mexico took full advantage of the opening. The victory was more than three points: it gave Mexico home advantage for the round of 32 and a clear path into the next stage with momentum that now carries national and tournament-wide weight.

The result also extended Mexico’s perfect World Cup record against South Korea. The two sides had met twice before on the sport’s biggest stage, in France in 1998 and in Russia in 2018, and Mexico won both of those matches as well. For a team that needed a statement after 2022, this was the kind of result that raises expectations as quickly as it raises flags.