Hoyeon made an unexpected appearance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup final on Sunday, becoming the first Korean actor to participate in a World Cup final ceremony.
Ahead of the final World Cup match between Argentina and Spain at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Hoyeon, whose Korean full name is Jung Ho-yeon, walked onto the pitch alongside Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz, carrying the World Cup trophy in a specially designed Louis Vuitton case.
The pair presented the trophy as part of the Trophy Trunk Ceremony, a symbolic event in which the championship trophy is brought onto the field in a custom-made case and unveiled before kickoff.
Hoyeon was selected for the role as a global ambassador for Louis Vuitton, which produced the official trophy trunk for this year's tournament. The French fashion house has created the World Cup trophy's official travel case since the 2010 tournament in South Africa.
Hoyeon rose to global fame through her role as North Korean defector Kang Sae-byeok in Netflix's "Squid Game" in 2021. She has since expanded her career across acting and fashion, establishing herself as one of Korea's most prominent global stars.
She recently made her Korean film debut in director Na Hong-jin's "Hope," playing a character named Seong-ae. The film surpassed 2 million admissions within three days of its release in South Korea, the fastest a film has reached the milestone in the country this year.
Although South Korea did not make it to the round of 32, Korean stars still left their mark on the World Cup final. While Hoyeon's appearance came as a surprise, BTS took the stage in a highly anticipated performance as a co-headliner of the first halftime show ever held during a FIFA World Cup final. The group performed its global hit "Dynamite," adapting the lyrics to include soccer-themed phrases such as "kick the ball" and "a game of football."
tammy@heraldcorp.com
