- South Africa have failed to win any of their last three home fixtures.
- Republic of Korea have won their last three games in a row, scoring 8 goals and conceding once.
- Korea's 2-1 win over Czech Republic in their World Cup opener was one of three consecutive victories.
Korea to keep the tempo high in Monterrey Stadium
South Africa sit fourth and Republic of Korea second in Group A of the FIFA World Cup 2026 after both teams got their campaigns underway earlier. Bafana Bafana lost 2-0 to Mexico in the opening fixture, while the Taegeuk Warriors claimed a 2-1 win over the Czech Republic to take three points.
The odds on this clash look interesting to us as the bookies make Korea the clear favourites at 1.57 with South Africa set as the outsiders at 6.0. It's likely that Korea's greater momentum and impressive recent form will see them take the three points.
In-Beom Hwang has been the heartbeat of their play and the midfielder who has one assist to his name in this tournament could be a key figure on Thursday.
South Africa seek first World Cup win since 2010
This is a huge game for South Africa as it represents their first World Cup appearance since 2010 and pitting their stability against Korea's speed should make for an interesting tactical battle in Monterrey.
Hugo Broos has been in charge of Bafana Bafana since May 2021 and he has instilled a disciplined approach and compact shape to the team.
His side play a 5-3-2 system in which they seek to be solid in central areas while pressing selectively to disrupt the game. The South Africans edged out Jamaica 1-0 in a friendly and they will need their key players to stand up here after a lack of individual brilliance was evident against the Mexican hosts.
Taegeuk Warriors can be trusted to deliver
Korea's new boss Myung-Bo Hong has had a fairly short period to make an impact since being appointed in July 2024 but his side are playing at a high tempo with an aggressive 3-4-3 that features wing-backs who get forward a lot.
The Koreans are good in transition and they press the life out of opponents, so it will be interesting to see how the wing-back battles play out on Thursday.
Hyun-Gyu Oh is the leading scorer for the Taegeuk Warriors in the World Cup with one goal in one match and his clinical sharpness could make all the difference in this clash.
Korea's only recent away fixture was a defeat, but their overall momentum is impressive and they can take the spoils here.
The 'Both teams to score - No' market is taken at 1.72 as Korea will keep it solid in defense and South Africa may not be able to threaten their opponents enough to score.
