Overview
- Naegohyang Women’s FC, which informed the Asian Football Confederation on May 1, will arrive Saturday, May 17, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 20, in Suwon, according to the KFA and Seoul’s Unification Ministry.
- The visit will be the first by a North Korean sports team to the South since 2018 and the first by a North Korean women’s club, with a 39‑member delegation of 27 players and 12 staff flying into Incheon International Airport.
- The match is an AFC Women’s Champions League semifinal, and the winner advances to the May 23 final to face Melbourne City or Tokyo Verdy Beleza, while the loser departs on May 21 with no third‑place game.
- Naegohyang brings a strong core that helped North Korea win the 2024 U‑20 and 2025 U‑17 Women’s World Cups, and the club beat Suwon 3–0 in a group match in November 2025.
- Football bodies are steering the exchange, with the AFC coordinating logistics and its president recently praising North Korea’s women’s program as relations between the two governments remain tense.