South Korean footballers Son Heung-min and Kim Min-jae have been listed among the top 100 players expected to participate in the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North, Central America and the Caribbean. The rankings were released by U.S. media outlet Fox Sports. Attention is now focused on whether other South Korean players, such as Lee Kang-in, will be ranked higher than Son Heung-min and Kim Min-jae when the full list is revealed.
Son and Kim’s Positions Revealed
Fox Sports released their World Cup player rankings for 100th to 76th place, placing Son Heung-min at 81st and Kim Min-jae at 98th. The final squads have not been announced, but these two South Korean players have already been recognised among potential participants. The World Cup will involve 48 nations, with each country having a final squad size of 26 players, making a total of 1,248 players.
Kim Min-jae’s 98th position places him ahead of Ecuador’s Feris Estupiñán (100th) and Sweden’s Alexander Isak (99th). Those ranked just ahead of Kim Min-jae include France’s Bradley Barcola and Argentina’s Lisandro Martínez.
Son Heung-min is ranked 81st, placing him ahead of Netherlands’ Jeremy Frimpong and England’s Reece James. However, he was ranked lower than France’s Jules Koundé, United States’ Christian Pulisic, Turkey’s Arda Güler, and Sweden’s Viktor Gyökeres.
Other Asian Players and Group A Representation
Fox Sports initially revealed rankings from 100th to 76th place. The highest-ranked player in this initial release was Spain’s Dani Olmo. Alongside Son Heung-min and Kim Min-jae, Japan’s Kaoru Mitoma was also featured, ranked 94th.
In Group A, which includes Mexico, Czech Republic, South Africa, and South Korea, only Mexico’s Raúl Jiménez was included in the rankings, securing the 90th spot.
Further Rankings to be Announced
The rankings from 75th place and above will be released later. It is anticipated to see if any other South Korean player will achieve a higher ranking than Son Heung-min and Kim Min-jae. Lee Kang-in and Oh Hyeon-gyu are potential candidates for higher rankings.