North Korea women's soccer club to make rare South visit

A rare inter-Korean sports clash will take place in South Korea this month. For the first time in 8 years, a North Korean sports team will play in the South.

The match comes as Seoul seeks to mend a years-long strained relationship with Pyongyang [File: February 25, 2018]Image: Natacha Pisarenko/AP Photo/picture alliance

A North Korean women’s soccer club will visit South Korea for a face-off between the rival neighbors, making it the first sports team since 2018 to play on the South’s soil, the Unification Ministry in Seoul said on Monday.

North Korea’s Naegohyang Women’s FC is set to play against the South Korean Suwon FC Women ‌on May 20 in the semi-finals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Champions ⁠League.

What do we know about the rare game?

Pyongyang has sent a list of a delegation of 27 players ⁠and 12 staff who would visit South Korea ‌for the semi-final of ⁠Asia’s top-tier women’s football club competition, the ministry said.

It did not give further details on the exact date of the team’s arrival, but the French AFP news agency reported they would arrive on May 17.

The winning club would play the league’s final against either Australia’s Melbourne City or Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza on May 23.

“The losing team in the semi-final will return home on Thursday, May 21, with no third-place playoff scheduled,” the South Korean Unification Ministry said in a press statement.

Source : https://www.dw.com/en/north-korea-womens-soccer-club-to-make-rare-south-korea-visit/a-77026239