President Lee Myung-bak praised the South Korean football team for its performance at the World Cup on Saturday despite the 2-1 loss to Uruguay that stopped its advance to the quarterfinals.
Lee watched the game live on television in Toronto while having lunch and received briefings from aides ahead of his one-on-one summit with U.S. President Barack Obama.
The leaders are visiting Toronto, Canada's economic capital, to attend a G-20 summit.
"Although they were defeated, they fought well," Lee was quoted as saying by his spokeswoman, Kim Eun-hye. "I send a message of encouragement to our spirited players who did their best to the end."