Fifa Women’s World Cup: US-born South Korean Casey Phair makes history as tournament’s youngest ever player, aged 16
- Koreans lose their first group match to Colombia in Sydney but Phair breaks a World Cup record that had stood since 1999
- ‘She’s got that self-belief, one of the aspects I’ve always admired from the US girls,’ coach Colin Bell says of the US-born striker
South Korea made football history despite suffering a 2-0 loss to Colombia on Tuesday, as Casey Phair became the youngest player ever to feature at a Women’s World Cup.
At 16 years and 26 days, the US-born striker made her debut in the second half of the Group H match in Sydney.
The opening outing for both teams was settled by two costly first-half errors by South Korea that led to goals for Colombia, and substitute striker Phair had to wait until the 78th minute to step on to the pitch at Sydney Football Stadium.
With an American father and Korean mother, Phair is also the first player of mixed descent to make the senior South Korean women’s football squad. After being called up to play for the United States at youth level, the teen switched to South Korea and quickly found herself playing in a World Cup.
South Korea’s English coach Colin Bell said he was keen to protect the teenager.
