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Korea dominates Uzbekistan 6-0 in AFC Women's Asian Cup quarterfinal match

Published: 15 Mar. 2026, 14:38 Updated: 15 Mar. 2026, 14:57

Korea's Park Soo-jeong, second from right, celebrates her goal with teammates during the AFC Women's Asian Cup Australia 2026 football match between Uzbekistan and Korea at Stadium Australia in Sydney on March 14. [AFP/YONHAP]

Korea cruised into the AFC Women’s Asian Cup semifinals and secured a berth in the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup with a dominant 6-0 win over Uzbekistan on Saturday.

Shin Sang-woo's side settled the match early and never looked back at Stadium Australia in Sydney. Son Hwa-yeon opened the scoring in the ninth minute, finishing off Korea’s early pressure, and Ko Yoo-jin doubled the lead in the 20th minute as Korea seized full control of the quarterfinal.

Korea carried that momentum into the second half. Park Soo-jeong made it 3-0 in the 57th minute before veteran midfielder Ji So-yun added another in the 72nd. Lee Eun-young struck in the 85th minute and Jang Sel-gi capped the rout deep into stoppage time to complete the six-goal performance.

The victory sends Korea to the semifinals of the Women’s Asian Cup for the second consecutive tournament. At the 2022 edition in India, Korea reached the final for the first time in its history before finishing as runner-up.

Korea's Lee Eun-young, right, and Uzbekistan's Dilrabo Asadova battle for the ball during the Women's Asian Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Korea and Uzbekistan at Stadium Australia in Sydney on March 14. [AP/YONHAP]

Saturday’s result also guarantees Korea a place at the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. The top four teams at the 12-nation tournament qualify directly, while two additional spots go to the winners of a playoff between the quarterfinal losers.

The qualification marks Korea’s fifth appearance at the Women’s World Cup. The team has now reached four straight tournaments since the 2015 event in Canada, where it advanced to the round of 16.

Korea will face the winner of the quarterfinal between Japan and the Philippines in the semifinal match on Tuesday in Sydney.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY PIH JU-YOUNG [[email protected]]