Korean men's rugby defeats the United Arab Emirates and advances to the semifinals of the Asian Games... clash with hong kong

The Korean men's rugby sevens team, aiming to advance to the finals of the Asian Games for the second time in a row, defeated the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and advanced to the semifinals.

Korea defeated UAE 29-12 in the men's rugby quarterfinals of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at the Minato Soccer Stadium in Nagoya, Japan on the 2nd and advanced to the semifinals.

Korea will now compete for a ticket to the finals in the semifinals against defending champion Hong Kong, considered the best in Asian rugby.

Hong Kong is the strongest team that won back-to-back championships in the 2018 Jakarta/Palembang and 2022 Hangzhou tournaments, and is also the opponent that inflicted a painful defeat on Korea in the finals of the previous tournament.

In the quarterfinals on this day, Korea showed off its tremendous firepower and completed the warm-up for the revenge match against Hong Kong.

In particular, Jang Jeong-min led the attack with a great performance, scoring 15 points by scoring 3 tries on his own.

Korean rugby, which swept gold medals at the Bangkok 1998 and Busan 2002 competitions, was pushed back by Hong Kong and Japan and had to be satisfied with bronze medals each time.

However, at the 2022 Hangzhou Games, they advanced to the finals for the first time in 17 years and won a valuable silver medal, signaling a splendid revival.

Korea, which gained momentum with a refreshing victory, is aiming to surpass Hong Kong in the semifinals, advance to the finals for the second time in a row, and reclaim the glorious gold medal.