North Korean women’s team to play in South for first time in 12 years | OneFootball

For the first time in 12 years, a North Korean women’s football team will play in South Korea on 20 May, the North’s first sporting trip to the country since 2018.

The Unification Ministry said North Korean authorities had notified it of a 39-strong delegation from Naegohyang to face Suwon in the Asian Champions League semi-finals.

The winners will meet Melbourne City or Tokyo Verdy Beleza in the final, also in South Korea, on 23 May.

The neighbours remain technically at war, their 1950-53 conflict ending with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

The last visit by a North Korean women’s football side was in 2014, when the national team competed at the Asian Games in Incheon.

North Korea’s women are among Asia’s leading sides, with several international titles in recent years highlighted by state media. The senior team are ranked 11th in the world, second in Asia behind Japan in 5th.

In mid-March, the women’s national team secured qualification for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil.

Source: L'Équipe