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The South Korean flag doesn't include the color purple.
But on Thursday night in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the Korean jerseys are that color as they take on Mexico.
Technically, according to the broadcast, they're "magenta."
Anyone watching, though, would call them purple, or maybe lavender.
MORE: How Cristiano Ronaldo cost Portugal in its draw with DR Congo
Why is South Korea wearing purple jerseys?
This is South Korea's official away kit.
While it may seem that it'd be an alternate, it's not. They simply chose that in 2026, for the World Cup, they'd wear this non-white look as their visitor jersey.
Their red kit is their home look, and they wear this "floral violet" away uniform instead of a white look.
The Nike meaning behind these floral, violet uniforms is that they're supposed to draw from the "explosive momentum of a blooming flower."
MORE: Messi, Mbappe, Haaland provide a World Cup day made in heaven
They're certainly a pretty look. They've likely sold a lot of them to fans.
They are far from a classic look, but they look sharp on Thursday night with Mexico in their black kits. The purple color provides an awesome contrast.
Fans will likely mostly determine how they feel about it based on the final result they get in the new look.
More FIFA World Cup news:
- USA, England can't actually play on July 4th
- Spain makes a massive Lamine Yamal mistake
- Ref cams are making quite the fashion statement
- Cape Verde pulls off one of craziest results in World Cup history
- Pink cleats are everywhere at the World Cup
Billy Heyen
Billy Heyen is a freelance writer with The Sporting News. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who spent his senior year following Jim Boeheim's basketball team around the country. His reporting work has also included extensive high school sports coverage at the Sandusky Register and Rochester Democrat & Chronicle. Adventures in sports writing have also led to in-person coverage of the Buffalo Sabres, Cleveland Guardians, U.S. men's national soccer team and a variety of minor league baseball stories. When people ask if he's seen a movie, the answer is usually "No, I was probably watching sports." Even away from sports, his main hobby is running (much slower than any athlete in these pages).
Source: Sporting News
