South Korea were knocked out of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Chile on Wednesday following a 2-0 loss to Belgium.

Jorn Vancamp and Matthias Verreth scored in each half for Belgium in the round of 16 showdown at Estadio La Portada in La Serena, Chile, as South Korea bowed out of the tournament despite winning their group with an undefeated record.

Vancamp scored only 11 minutes into the match, capitalizing on sloppy passing by South Korea. After Lee Sang-min's free kick attempt was blocked, Belgium responded with a fast break, and Vancamp sped past two defenders to beat goalkeeper Ahn Joon-soo, giving Belgium an early lead.

It was the first goal allowed by South Korea in the tournament.

They had defeated Brazil and Guinea, both by the scores of 1-0, and played England to a scoreless draw to finish with the best record in Group B.

South Korea failed to mount much in the way of counterattacks the rest of the opening half.

Belgium struck again in the 67th minute, after South Korea turned the ball over deep in the Belgian zone. A long outlet pass found Verreth streaking down the right flank, and he danced past Oh Se-hun before firing one to the top left-hand corner to double the Belgian lead.

South Korea had a chance to get on the sheet four minutes later, but Lee Seung-woo missed his penalty attempt. Oh was brought down by Laurent Lemoine in the box on a breakaway, but goalkeeper Jens Teunckens bailed him out by turning aside Lee's low shot to his left.

South Korea head coach Choi Jin-cheul admitted afterward he'd failed to devise proper game plans against Belgium.

"We'd watched the video of their earlier matches but they had some new faces in the starting lineup today," Choi said. "And Belgium played a much different style of football than they did during group stage. We made some defensive adjustments but it wasn't enough."

Choi rued some costly mistakes but said he was pleased with the team's run to the knockout stage overall.

"Our players gained valuable experience by beating Brazil and Guinea in group play," he added. "I hope they can learn from the defeat today and make sure they don't repeat the same errors in the future."

South Korea closed out the competition with two goals scored and two allowed in four matches.

South Korea last reached the quarterfinals of the U-17 World Cup in 2009. (Yonhap)