00:06The first Asian country to participate in the FIFA World Cup was Indonesia.
00:12This was at the 1938 tournament in France during the colonial era,
00:17when they were known as the Dutch East Indies.
00:23They lost their solitary match 6-0,
00:25which is still better than the continent's next representative on the game's biggest stage,
00:31South Korea, when they lost 9-0 and 7-0 on tournament debut in 1954.
00:42It wasn't until the 1966 World Cup that Asian participation became commonplace.
00:48And in England that year, North Korea hinted at what was to come in future decades,
00:54as they stunned Italy in the group stage,
00:57then led Portugal 3-0 in the quarter-finals,
01:00before Eusebio near single-handedly completed a miraculous comeback.
01:10This was the first time that a nation from outside Europe or the Americas
01:14had progressed from the first stage of a World Cup.
01:21Mexico 86 was the first time two Asian nations appeared together at the same tournament.
01:26But it wasn't until Saudi Arabia in 1994 that another team from the continent made the knockout stages.
01:37And it stayed that way until 2002, a watershed moment in the history of the AFC,
01:43with World Cup hosting rights being shared by Japan and South Korea.
01:50Despite trepidation from outside at the level of interest in the sport in East Asia,
01:54and the quality of the hosts, the tournament proved a roaring success.
02:02Japan reached the round of 16 for the first time,
02:06only to stumble against the competition's surprise packet, Turkey.
02:12Under the guidance of Rus Hiddink, South Korea went as far as the semi-finals,
02:17sending shockwaves through football's established order.
02:21I'm very happy, I'm very satisfied that I could provide my, hopefully,
02:28my knowledge and my experience.
02:29But at the end, they have to do it. They have to do it.
02:33And then I look and I'm happy that a lot of people, a lot of Korean people,
02:37enjoy now, not just yesterday, but also in the past month,
02:43the development of the Korean team.
02:44And that makes me, makes me normal, humble and happy for them.
02:50South Korea had never won a match at the World Cup before,
02:53but Hiddink unlocked something magical in the Taeguk Warriors.
02:58A 2-0 win in the first match against Poland had the fans in a frenzy.
03:06Ahn Yonghwan came off the bench to level the second match against the USA.
03:11And when 21-year-old Park Ji-sung announced himself to the world
03:15with the only goal against Portugal,
03:18South Korea topped their group.
03:22The nation's president, Kim Dae-jung, led the celebrations.
03:27Good job, thank you very much. Very good job.
03:30Thank you very much.
03:31Thank you very much.
03:33Thank you very much.
03:36Thank you very much.
03:40Our supporter.
03:43Coach Hiddink, and players, and all the people who participated in the effort,
03:48I really appreciate your work.
03:51You have made not only 48 million,
03:53but also 70 million Koreans cheering now on the peninsula.
04:00In the round of 16, Ahn Yonghwan headed the golden goal that sent Italy to their second Korean calamity.
04:07The goal that saw him lose his job, with Italian side Perugia in retaliation.
04:16Two controversial refereeing decisions helped South Korea beat Spain on penalties in the quarter-finals.
04:22And although their run came to an end against Germany in the semis,
04:26Hiddink had cemented his reputation as Mr. Fix-It on football's greatest stage.
04:35The AFC has had at least four representatives at every World Cup since,
04:40and only once has an Asian nation not reached the knockout phase.
04:45But despite Iran, Australia, South Korea, and Japan all becoming World Cup regulars,
04:53consistency has not converted into further notable peaks.
04:59Japan in particular can feel frustrated at failing to progress beyond the round of 16,
05:05despite long spells ranked inside the top 20 on FIFA's rankings.
05:11But with at least eight sides from the continent appearing at World Cups from 2026,
05:17the chances of one of those pushing new boundaries increases.
05:23Whether that's from one of the traditional powerhouses in the East,
05:27or the rising stars of the West,
05:29the AFC is home to an increasingly confident and ambitious array of football nations.
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