"Korea 3-0, Japan 0-0"… Korea and Japan Diverge Against Ecuador, Japan Reach Kirin Cup Final
Korea beat Ecuador 3-0 but lost 1-4 to Uruguay, finishing with 1 win and 1 loss. Japan drew 0-0 with Ecuador and advanced to the Kirin Cup final on penalties, where they will face New Zealand.
Translated from Korean with AI assistance. Read the original. Sources and original publication dates are retained.
Three-Line Summary
- Korea beat Ecuador 3-0 but lost 1-4 to Uruguay, ending the September international window with 1 win and 1 loss.
- Son Heung-min is joint first with Cha Bum-kun on 58 international goals, and his MLS guaranteed salary of $11.15 million ranks second.
- Japan drew 0-0 with Ecuador, then won 5-4 on penalties to reach the Kirin Cup final, where a winner's prize of 30 million yen is at stake.
It was Korea who beat Ecuador by three goals. Yet the title of '3 matches unbeaten against South American opposition' went to Japan. Four days after the Ecuador match, Korea collapsed 1-4 to Uruguay. Measured against the common opponent Ecuador, the goal difference was +3 for Korea and 0 for Japan.
Son Heung-min Joint First With 58 Goals… Korea 3-0 vs. Ecuador, 1-4 vs. Uruguay
It began on September 24 at Suwon World Cup Stadium. It was interim manager Robert Moreno's (49) debut, and he fielded Son Heung-min (34) and Oh Hyeon-gyu as a two-man strike partnership in a 4-4-2. CBC News reported that Oh Hyeon-gyu scored in the 54th minute, Son scored from a free kick in the 58th minute, and substitute Lee Dong-gyeong sealed it in the 86th minute.
The momentum reversed in four days. On September 28 at Seoul World Cup Stadium, Korea conceded 3 goals in the first half alone and lost 1-4 to Uruguay. According to Korea Daily, Moreno said right after the match, "I want to apologize to the fans first." Korea's record in this international window is 1 win, 1 loss (as of before the 20:00 kickoff on 2026.10.02).
Son Heung-min scored in the 35th minute of the second half against Uruguay to reach 58 goals in international matches, becoming joint first with Cha Bum-kun as Korea's all-time leading men's scorer (as of before the 20:00 kickoff on 2026.10.02). It was unclear whether the ball touched him, but, according to Herald Business, the Korea Football Association officially recorded the goal as Son's.
Son Heung-min's Salary: Second-Highest Guaranteed Salary in MLS (MLS Players Association, as of April 2026)
| Rank | Player | Club | Guaranteed salary (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lionel Messi | Inter Miami | 28,333,333 |
| 2 | Son Heung-min | LAFC | 11,152,852 |
| 3 | Rodrigo De Paul | Inter Miami | 9,688,320 |
| 4 | Hirving Lozano | San Diego FC | 9,333,333 |
| 5 | Miguel Almirón | Atlanta United | 7,871,000 |
Radio Korea and others reported that Son's guaranteed salary of about 16.6 billion won is the highest among Asian players. It is 39% of Messi's ($28.33 million) and $1,464,532 more than that of third-placed De Paul. Bonuses and endorsement income are not included.
Kirin Cup Final Prize of 30 Million Yen, and the Reality Behind Japan's '3 Matches Unbeaten'
On October 1 in Yokohama, Japan finished 90 minutes 0-0 with Ecuador. In the penalty shootout, goalkeeper Zion Suzuki (24) saved the shot of Ecuador's third taker. Suzuki, who moved from Parma to Aston Villa in August, had a transfer fee that, according to reports such as Football Italia, totaled 35 million euros.
| Date | Team | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 24 | Korea | Ecuador | 3-0 win |
| September 24 | Japan | Uruguay | 3-1 win |
| September 28 | Korea | Uruguay | 1-4 loss |
| September 28 | Japan | Venezuela | 2-1 win |
| October 1 | Japan | Ecuador | 0-0 draw (penalties 5-4) |
Mediapen described these 3 matches as '3 straight wins,' and an article carried on Daum called them '3G unbeaten.' In official records, a penalty shootout is merely a procedure for deciding who advances, and the Ecuador match stands as a 0-0 draw. The accurate description is 2 wins and 1 draw. Only in the FIFA ranking calculation (as summarized on Wikipedia) is a shootout win counted separately, at 0.75 points.
Kirin Cup 2026 Prize Money and Remaining Schedule (October 5, Japan time)
| Place | Prize | Deciding match |
|---|---|---|
| Winner | 30 million yen + Kirin Cup and additional prize | Final: Japan vs. New Zealand, 19:30, National Stadium, Tokyo |
| Runner-up | 15 million yen | Loser of the final |
| Third place | 5 million yen | Third-place match: Ecuador vs. Panama, 15:30 |
New Zealand drew 1-1 with Panama and won 5-3 on penalties to reach the final. Korea face Venezuela at 8 p.m. on October 2 at Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium, and the result has not yet been reported. If Son scores 1 more goal, he will become the outright all-time leader in international goals. After the Uruguay match, he said of his 58th goal, "I don't think I felt it touch me."
Related Official Sites
- Korea Football Association (KFA) official website — Check national team match results and each player's international records
- Japan Football Association (JFA) Kirin Challenge Cup 2026 tournament overview — Original text of tournament rules, prize money, and the final schedule
- MLS Players Association 2026 Spring Salary Guide (PDF) — Primary source for the guaranteed salaries of MLS players including Son Heung-min
Featured image · Archival photo · Not an on-site photo of the current match in the article · Photo: Wikimedia Commons (ypa.ir), CC BY 4.0
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