'I didn't think they could lose': Pyo Chang-won sends support to South Korea after World Cup exit

Criminal profiler Pyo Chang-won, director of the Pyo Chang-won Institute of Criminal Science, sent a message of support to the South Korean national football team at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America.

Pyo posted a video on his social media account Monday, accompanied by the message: "I will cheer for the Taeguk Warriors forever."

Filmed on June 18, the day before South Korea's match against Mexico, the video shows Pyo telling the players, "Play football trusting in our support. I will cheer for you forever. I love you."

The outcome — failing to advance to the round of 32 — was not something he had anticipated. When a producer asked whether they should film an ending for an elimination scenario, Pyo looked puzzled and replied, "The way things look now, I don't think they can lose."

South Korea had come from behind to beat the Czech Republic 2-1 in their Group A opener, a result that briefly pushed their projected odds of advancing to the knockout stage to 94 percent.

Pyo also addressed the possibility of elimination in the video, saying, "Making something to prepare for a loss? That's unnecessary waste." He added, "Even if the round of 32 turns out to be the final leg of the journey, I think we need to be mentally prepared. I will keep applauding them, now and always. I will cheer for you forever. I love you."

Online viewers left a range of reactions to the video. "I sincerely hope and cheer for Korean football to rise again," wrote one commenter. Another asked Pyo to "analyze coach Hong Myung-bo (ㅎㅁㅂ)," while a third quipped, "Your football predictions were off — this clearly isn't your area of expertise."