Nickname: Taegeuk Warriors
Manager: Huh Jung-Moo
Previous World Cup appearances: Seven
Best finish: Fourth place, 2002
Key players:
Park Ji-Sung (captain)
Seol Ki-Hyeon
Lee Dong-Gook
South Korea will arrive in South Africa boasting a qualifying record few nations can match.
Huh Jung-Moo's side recorded seven wins and seven draws on the road to FIFA World Cup 2010, and a 2-0 victory against United Arab Emirates in Dubai sealed their progress to their seventh straight World Cup.
They will almost certainly struggle to match their famous feat of 2002, when Guus Hiddink guided them as co-hosts to a semi-final: but they remain strong contenders to progress from the group stage.
Their 3-1 success against Turkmenistan away in Ashgabat is not the sort of result that will have Brazil, Spain, or the Netherlands concerned: but their consistency suggests they will make a mark on the competition.
Twice they drew 1-1 with a talented Iran side in qualifying, while on April 1 2009 the joke was on their rivals Korea DPR, as Huh Jung-Moo's side grabbed a 1-0 victory in Seoul.
The coach has a memorable World Cup pedigree of his own: it was his goal against Japan which secured the nation's progress to the World Cup finals in Mexico in 1986. South Korea's seven straight tournaments since then is a record for the Asia qualifying group.
South Korea topped Asian qualifying Group 2, ahead of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
Park Ji-Sung's talent has illuminated the Premier League since 2005 but he's not the only South Korean to be playing in the British top-flight: Cho Won-Hee plays at Wigan, Lee Chung-Yong at Bolton and Fulham's Seol Ki-Hyeon completes the contingent.
Former Spurs and PSV Eindhoven full-back Lee Young-Pyo, who now plays his club football for Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia, reached 100 caps in a qualifiying clash against Saudi Arabia in November 2008. Striker Lee-Dong Gook, formerly of Middlesbrough, now turns out for Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in South Korea.
A quarter-final would be a magnificent achievement: but they're more likely to exit at the group stage.
