Top Goal Scorers For South Korea Football Team All-Time: Since the 1960s, South Korea has become good at soccer in Asia. They won the Asian Cup twice. They’ve been in eleven World Cup finals since 1986. They also started the first professional soccer league in Asia in 1983.
In 2002, they hosted the World Cup with Japan, and they did well. Their team got to the semi-finals, and it was the first time an Asian team did that.
In 2006, they didn’t do well in the World Cup and got knocked out early. The same thing happened in 2010 and 2014. In 2018, they beat Germany but still didn’t make it to the next round.
In the 2022 World Cup. They got second place in their group but got knocked out in the round of 16 by Brazil. In 2003, 2008, 2015, 2017, and 2019 South Korea won the East Asian Championship.
Top Goal Scorers For South Korea Football Team All-Time
let’s talk about the top goal scorers for the South Korean soccer team of all time.
1. Cha Bum-kun
- Career Span: 1972–1986
- Matches: 136
- Goals: 58
- Average: 0.43
The top goal scorer for South Korea is Cha Bum-kun. He played 136 matches for South Korea and scored 58 goals. He played for 14 years in the national team and his notable achievement was playing in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico.
Cha Bum-kun holds the record for being the first non-European and youngest player ever to reach 100 international appearances. Later, he was surpassed by Hussain Saeed.
He was honored as Asia’s Footballer of the 20th Century by the Asian Football Confederation.
2. Hwang Sun-hong
- Career Span: 1988–2002
- Matches: 103
- Goals: 50
- Average: 0.49
Ranked second in the list of top goal scorers for South Korea is Hwang Sun-hong. He played 103 matches for the South Korean national football team from 1988 to 2002, scoring 50 goals. Hwang participated in four World Cup tournaments between 1990 and 2002.
In the 2002 World Cup Hwang scored a goal in the group game against Poland, helping his team win 2-0. South Korea achieved their best result in the World Cup by finishing fourth in that tournament.
Hwang Sun-hong was ranked 27th in the vote for the Asian Footballer of the Century.
3. Son Heung-min
- Career Span: 2010–present
- Matches: 113
- Goals: 37
- Average: 0.33
Ranked third among the top goal scorers for South Korea is Son Heung-min. He was part of the South Korean team that won the bronze medal at the 2011 Asian Cup in Qatar. He continued to impress and was named the Man of the Match in a game against Russia during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
In 2015, Son played a crucial role in helping South Korea reach the Asian Cup final in Australia, where they won the silver medal. He scored the equalizer in the final against Australia, forcing the game into extra time.
Son Heung-min has also faced challenges, including racism in Germany. He found great satisfaction in the 2018 World Cup win against Germany, which became one of the most memorable moments of his career.
In the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Son Heung-min scored two goals and assisted in two more during the group-stage matches. Even though South Korea was eventually knocked out in the round of 16 by Brazil, Son’s outstanding performance in the 2022 World Cup was widely recognized as a success.
4. Park Lee-chun
- Career Span: 1969–1974
- Matches: 89
- Goals: 36
- Average: 0.4
Ranked fourth among the top goal scorers for South Korea is Park Lee-chun. He represented the South Korea national football team from 1969 to 1974.
During the 1972 AFC Asian Cup, Park Lee-chun scored four goals and helped South Korea finish as runners-up in the tournament.
After retiring as a player, he went on to manage the South Korean under-20 team in the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship.
5. Kim Jae-han
- Career Span: 1972–1979
- Matches: 57
- Goals: 33
- Average: 0.58
Ranked fifth among the top goal scorers for South Korea is Kim Jae-han. He was selected as a member of the national team for the 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification. Kim made significant contributions by scoring goals against Thailand and Hong Kong, which helped South Korea advance to the final round of the qualifiers.
In the final against Australia, Kim scored another goal, but the aggregate score was tied. This led to a third deciding match. Unfortunately, South Korea lost the rematch 1-0, missing the chance to qualify for the World Cup.
6. Lee Dong-gook
- Career Span: 1998–2017
- Matches: 105
- Goals: 33
- Average: 0.31
Lee Dong was the 6th top goal scorer for South Korea. In 1998, he played as a substitute in the FIFA World Cup. After that, he helped South Korea win the AFC Youth Championship and was the top scorer.
Lee had ups and downs in his career. He did well in the 2000 AFC Asian Cup, scoring three goals, and helped South Korea win a match. He also scored in important games. But in the 2002 FIFA World Cup, he was not chosen to play, which disappointed fans. They called him the “Lazy Genius” because he didn’t have the qualities the coach wanted.
In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, he missed a crucial goal opportunity, and fans criticized him. He tried to play in the 2014 and 2018 qualifiers but didn’t make it to the final teams, ending his international career.
7. Choi Soon-ho
- Career Span: 1980–1991
- Matches: 103
- Goals: 30
- Average: 0.29
Choi Soon-ho was a talented soccer player. He was good at scoring goals. In 1980, he played in the AFC Asian Cup and scored seven goals, including two against Kuwait and a hat-trick against United Arab Emirates. Even though his team made it to the final against Kuwait, they lost. Choi was only 18 years old but became the top scorer in the AFC Asian Cup, which was a big deal.
Choi was selected to play for South Korea in the 1986 FIFA World Cup. He played well during the qualifications, contributing to more than half of the team’s goals.
The Italian club Juventus was interested in signing Choi after the World Youth Championship. They wanted him to play for their team in Serie A. However, his team POSCO didn’t agree to the offer, and Choi stayed with his team in South Korea.
8. Kim Do-hoon
- Career Span: 1994–2003
- Matches: 72
- Goals: 29
- Average: 0.4
Kim Do-hoon is the 8th-highest goal scorer for South Korea. He played for the national team and participated in the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France.
On March 28, 1999, Kim scored the only goal in a match against Brazil, winning the exhibition game 1-0. This victory made South Korea the first and only Asian nation to defeat Brazil.
9. Huh Jung-moo
- Career Span: 1974–1986
- Matches: 84
- Goals: 29
- Average: 0.35
Huh Jung-moo is the 9th highest goal scorer for South Korea. He became one of the founding members of Hyundai Horang-i in 1984 and played there for three years.
He was part of the South Korean national team from 1974 to 1986 and won two gold medals in the Asian Games.
Huh also played in the 1986 FIFA World Cup. In a memorable moment during a match against Argentina, there’s a famous photo where it looks like he’s kicking Diego Maradona, who seems to be in pain. Later in the tournament, Huh scored a goal against Italy.
10. Choi Yong-soo
- Career Span: 1995–2003
- Matches: 67
- Goals: 27
- Average: 0.4
Choi Yong-soo is the 10th-highest goal scorer for South Korea. He played in 67 international matches between 1995 and 2003, scoring 27 goals.
Choi participated in the 1998 World Cup in France and the 2002 World Cup in his home country, South Korea. He also played in the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup held in South Korea and Japan.
