The South Korean men's soccer national team poses for a photograph at South Field on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, May 30. (Yonhap) The South Korean men's national soccer team will face Venezuela and Uzbekistan in October international friendlies.The Korea Football Association announced Monday that it has finalized the opponents for two of the four friendly matches the national team will play at home during the September and October FIFA international windows.South Korea will take on Venezuela on Oct. 2, followed by Uzbekistan on Oct. 6. The venues and kickoff times for both matches will be announced at a later date.FIFA revised its international match calendar following the conclusion of the World Cup earlier in the month, reducing the number of annual FIFA international windows from five to four, beginning with the September 2026 window.The change is intended to reduce long-distance travel for national team players, improving player welfare while allowing teams longer training periods to refine tactics and improve the efficiency of national team camps.As a result, the September and October international window has been expanded to 16 days, allowing teams to play four matches during a single camp. The March, June and November windows remain unchanged at nine days each, with two matches scheduled for each.Venezuela is ranked No. 47 in the FIFA rankings. It finished eighth in South American qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, failing to secure a place in the World Cup.South Korea has faced Venezuela only once before, winning 3-1 in a friendly in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, on Sept. 5, 2014, behind two goals from Lee Dong-gook.Uzbekistan is No. 60 in the FIFA rankings and made its World Cup debut at the 2026 tournament. It competed against Colombia, Portugal and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the group stage, but lost to all three.South Korea holds a commanding all-time record against Uzbekistan, with 11 wins, four draws and one loss in 16 meetings. Their most recent encounter came in a friendly on Nov. 10, 2018, in Brisbane, Australia, where South Korea earned a 4-0 victory.The KFA said discussions are ongoing to finalize the opponents for the two friendly matches scheduled during the September international window, with an announcement to be made once negotiations are completed.Separately, the KFA said it will provide further details regarding the appointment of the men's national team head coach, a position that is currently vacant, once the selection process has been finalized.(This article was produced with the assistance of AI. — Ed.)