Our South Korea vs Ecuador prediction, best bets and odds for Thursday in Suwon — a first night in charge for Robert Moreno and Marcelo Gallardo alike.
Kick-off at Suwon World Cup Stadium is 7:00 AM ET on Thursday, September 24. Full US broadcast details are below.
South Korea vs Ecuador: Best Bets & Predictions
Two managers taking their first training session into a first match. The market is right to sit on the fence.
Our approach: expect a tight, low-scoring watch, and take the draw at a price that both markets agree on.
Kalshi probabilities reflect live market prices at the time of writing. Prediction markets are CFTC-regulated event contracts, not sportsbook bets. Sportsbook prices are the best available across the market at the time of writing and are shown in American format; your local odds and offer are served on click. 21+. Eligibility and T&Cs vary by state. Please bet responsibly. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.
Where to watch South Korea vs Ecuador
South Korea vs Ecuador kicks off at 7:00 AM ET / 6:00 AM CT / 4:00 AM PT on Thursday, September 24, at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, South Korea.
No US broadcaster has been confirmed for this fixture. Check local listings closer to kick-off.
South Korea vs Ecuador: what’s at stake?
Two new managers, one match, and neither has had more than a fortnight to work. Robert Moreno was appointed South Korea’s interim head coach on September 1, handed six games across the September and November windows and a contract that runs to November 27, with the option of extending through the Asian Cup in January. Marcelo Gallardo was confirmed as Ecuador’s head coach on September 14, on a deal that runs all the way to the 2030 World Cup. Both take charge for the first time on Thursday.
They arrive from opposite directions. Korea are here because it went wrong: third in Group A on three points, out of the World Cup, and Hong Myung-bo gone by the end of June having taken the fall for it. The detail that stings is how close it was. They beat Czechia 2-1 in their opening game and lost 1-0 to Mexico to a Luis Romo goal just after half-time, and they finished tenth of the twelve third-placed teams — two spots short of the cut. Ecuador, by contrast, finished second in CONMEBOL qualifying on 29 points behind only Argentina, and went out 2-0 to Mexico in the round of 32. Sebastián Beccacece was not renewed regardless.
Team news and talking points
Moreno is the more intriguing appointment of the two. A former Spain head coach who has since managed Monaco, Granada and Sochi, he is the first Spanish-born manager to take the Korea job and has brought five Spanish assistants with him. His first squad is 30 strong, named at Korea Football Park in Cheonan, and it keeps the familiar spine — Son Heung-min, Kim Min-jae, Lee Kang-in and Hwang In-beom are all in — while leaning unusually hard on the domestic game, with 12 K League players included and three uncapped call-ups in Incheon United’s Kim Geon-hui, Gimcheon Sangmu’s Park Tae-jun and Rangers midfielder Kim Min-su. Asked about his captain, Moreno said only that there is “a way to utilise” Son.
Gallardo’s task is different again. He won almost everything there was to win at River Plate and left in February, but he has never managed an international side, and Ecuador have handed him a reported salary north of $3 million a year to learn on the job. He inherits a squad that was good enough to finish above Colombia, Uruguay and Brazil in qualifying, which is a far better starting point than most incoming coaches get. Expect both men to use these two fixtures — Korea host Uruguay on Sunday, Ecuador go on to Japan next week — to look at players rather than chase a result. Elsewhere in Asia that week, Japan host Venezuela in Hiroshima.
South Korea vs Ecuador prediction
There is a version of this where Ecuador’s cohesion tells and they win comfortably. There is a more likely version where two teams meeting their new manager a week ago cancel each other out in front of a curious rather than fervent crowd. The markets lean towards the second, and so do we. Prediction: South Korea 1-1 Ecuador.
South Korea vs Ecuador FAQ
South Korea vs Ecuador kicks off at 7:00 AM ET / 6:00 AM CT / 4:00 AM PT on Thursday, September 24.
No US broadcaster has been confirmed for South Korea vs Ecuador. Check local listings closer to kick-off.
South Korea vs Ecuador is being played at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, South Korea.
Our prediction is South Korea 1-1 Ecuador. Our top pick is Under 2.5 goals at -182.
21+ | Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER | Odds correct at time of writing