Warmly welcomed by their ‘cousins’ from Seoul for the semi-finals of the AFC Champions League
A North Korean football team arrived in South Korea to play Wednesday in the semifinal of the AFC Champions League, the most important club football tournament in Asia. This is the first North Korean sporting visit to the South since 2018, a very rare event that comes at a time when relations between the two countries are at their lowest. The Naegohyang Women’s FC team, which means ‘My hometown’ in Korean, arrived at Incheon International Airport, South Korea, greeted by a crowd of journalists and fans holding welcome signs.
The team, Naegohyang Women’s FC, which means ‘My Hometown’ in Korean, arrived at Incheon International Airport on a plane from China and was greeted by a crowd of journalists and fans. “Welcome!”, they shouted as the 27 players, dressed in identical dark jackets and skirts and with light pink suitcases in tow, walked along a path cordoned off and guarded by an imposing security device, accompanied by a staff of 12 people. The match aroused considerable interest: the 7,000 tickets issued sold out in just a few hours. South Korea’s Unification Ministry also funded civil society organizations that plan to support both teams during the match, viewing the event as an opportunity to promote “mutual understanding between the two Koreas.”
