Lee Jae-sung Tallies 105 Caps, 15 Goals for South Korea
lee jae-sung reaches 105 caps and 15 goals for South Korea with his Mainz form carrying real weight into the FIFA World Cup 2026 picture. The 33-year-old has kept producing for club and country, and South Korea coach Myung-bo Hong is counting on that same level in midfield.
Mainz Form Under Urs Fischer
Lee appeared in every Bundesliga game he was available for last term, a run that matched his value in a Mainz side that finished 10th and reached the last eight of the UEFA Conference League. He scored six goals and added four assists in 2025/26, giving Mainz a reliable two-way midfielder while Fischer settled in after his appointment last December.
That output included a header in Fischer’s first game in charge against Bayern Munich, when Mainz came away with a 2-2 draw after Lee put them ahead. He also delivered a last-minute winner in November as Mainz beat Fiorentina 2-1 in a Conference League league-phase match, a result that fed into the club’s first European quarter-final in its history.
Hong’s Midfield Plan
For South Korea, Lee’s value is not just volume. Hong said he has wanted to try him alongside Hwang In-beom in central midfield, and described him this way: “He can play in any role, but I’ve wanted to try fielding him alongside Hwang In-beom [in central midfield]. He is a very gifted player.”
Lee’s international resume gives that plan more substance. He made his debut on 27 March 2015, played every minute of South Korea’s group campaign at the 2018 World Cup, and helped the team reach the round of 16 four years later. Five of his 15 international goals came in World Cup qualifying, a steady scoring rate for a midfielder whose job often starts deeper than the final pass.
South Korea’s Veteran Core
Hong’s squad also makes Lee’s role clearer. He is the second-oldest outfield player in the World Cup group behind Heung-min Son, and the form he showed at Mainz lines up with what South Korea needs from an experienced central option. Fischer put the workload element plainly: “With Lee, he sometimes needs protecting from himself. He can play three times a week with no issues whatsoever.”
That is the kind of profile South Korea cannot replace easily. Lee is close to the nation’s top 10 appearance-makers list, and the combination of 105 caps, 15 goals, and a season built on availability leaves him as one of the Bundesliga players most likely to shape Hong’s World Cup plans.
