South Korea Defender Cho Yu-min Suffers Foot Injury, Replaced by Cho Wi-je for 2026 World Cup

Defender Cho Yu-min was ruled out of the FIFA World Cup on May 31 after suffering a partial tear of the plantar fascia in his right foot during a friendly match the previous day. The Korea Football Association announced the 29-year-old Sharjah FC player will miss the June 11-July 19 tournament and will return home for treatment.

"He will be out for eight weeks, and we decided he won't be able to play in the World Cup," a national team official told reporters in Salt Lake City.

Cho sustained the injury in non-contact play during South Korea's 5-0 win over Trinidad and Tobago on May 30 at BYU South Field in Provo, Utah. After stealing the ball early in the second half, he pulled up lame, called for a trainer, and went down in pain. Medical staff tended to him before he walked gingerly off the pitch and was carried out of the stadium on the back of a team official.

U.S. training camp that began in mid-May. Midfielder Bae Jun-ho also suffered a right ankle injury in the same match but is expected to remain with the team.

Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors defender Cho Wi-je will replace Cho Yu-min in the squad. The 24-year-old, who has yet to earn an international cap, played four seasons with Busan IPark in K League 2 before joining the defending K League 1 champions this season. He was on the 55-man preliminary squad and traveled to Salt Lake City as one of three training partners.

South Korea will submit its final World Cup roster by the FIFA-mandated deadline on June 1. The team opens Group A play against Czechia on June 11 in Guadalajara, Mexico.