Incheon (South Korea) —
On Sunday, South Korea hosted a North Korean team for the first time in more than seven years, with the women’s soccer team arriving to compete in the Asian Club Championships.
The 39 players and staff of Pyongyang’s Naegohyang Women’s Soccer Club rushed past a throng of media and security personnel at Incheon International Airport after the team arrived on a flight from Beijing.
The North Korean players arrived smartly in matching blazers and skirts and headed straight to the bus without so much as a glance at the “welcome” cheers of the assembled unification supporters.
The players and staff remained silent and expressionless until the bus doors closed and they departed for Suwon under police escort.
The team’s latest visit did not come at a time when inter-Korean relations were particularly warm. Last month, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un cemented the division of the peninsula, amending the country’s isolationist constitution to define each country as separate territory while removing provisions related to reunification.
All the while, North Korea has pursued vast military developments, from new missiles, rockets and artillery systems to new warships and submarines.
Despite North Korea’s hardline approach, South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung has sought to improve relations across the demilitarized zone and ease tensions that were prevalent under his predecessor, Yun Seok-Yeol.
Seoul appear to be taking a low-key approach to Wednesday’s semi-final of the AFC Women’s Champions League, where more than 7,000 tickets quickly sold out last week.
The match against Suwon Football Club Women will be held in the city of the same name, about 40 kilometers south of the capital.
The 39 North Koreans, including 27 athletes, will be allowed to stay in South Korea for a week if they advance to the finals scheduled for Saturday at the same stadium.
Other teams competing in the last four in South Korea this week are Australia’s Melbourne City and Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza.
The last time North Korean players visited South Korea was in December 2018, when a joint North-South team competed in the International Table Tennis Federation World Grand Finals. Earlier that year, South Korea formed a unified women’s ice hockey team for the PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
About 3,000 seats were purchased for Wednesday’s match by civic groups forming a “joint supporters group.”
North Korea’s women’s soccer program has been a remarkable success, which is thought to please Mr. Kim.
In North Korea, sports are seen as more than just competition, but a source of national pride. National media frequently report on sporting successes.
Two years ago, when the soccer team won the Under-20 Women’s World Cup, Kim toasted with a “patriotic celebration.”
Some of Naegohyang’s players were on teams that lifted the trophy, while others played in the U-17 World Cup, with North Korea winning the last two tournaments.
The club is used to playing games outside of North Korea, having played in Myanmar and Laos in this tournament.
