During a rare visit to South Korea to participate in the tournament, Naegohyang Women’s FC defeated Tokyo Verdy Beleza 1-0.
Published May 23, 2026
North Korea’s sports team, visiting South Korea for the first time in eight years, crowned the visit by winning the Asian Women’s Champions League, defeating Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza 1-0 in the final.
Naegohyang Women’s FC lifted the trophy on Saturday in Suwon, South Korea, with a goal from captain Kim Kyung-young just before halftime.
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Women’s soccer is one of North Korea’s strongest international sports, with national teams regularly competing at the highest levels in Asia and the world.
Naegohyang’s victory means she will qualify for next year’s FIFA Women’s Champions Cup, which will feature teams from all over the world.
Naegohyang, which was founded in 2012 and whose name means “my hometown” in Korean, defeated Suwon FC Women 2-1 in a rare inter-Korean showdown in the semi-finals at the same Suwon Stadium earlier this week.
North Korea defeated Tokyo in the final, and although there were many hard tackles, the match was played in a fair spirit.
When the final whistle rang, the players hugged each other, and coach Li Yu-il sat on the bench and shed tears of joy.
There was a lot of interest in Naegohyang’s visit to South Korea, and the 7,087 general admission tickets for the semifinal match against Suwon were sold out in a few hours.
Tickets for the final were still available until shortly before kick-off, and the stadium was empty.
Because North Koreans are generally not allowed to enter South Korea, and the two countries have technically been at war since 1950, there were no formal Negohyang supporters.
Under the sunny skies, Korean spectators wearing sunglasses and hats cheered on Naegohyang while beating traditional drums.
Approximately 3,000 spectators were expected from citizen groups sponsored by the Seoul Ministry of Unification.
“Nearest Neighbor”
Jung Wook-sik, director of South Korean NGO Peace Network, told AFP news agency before the match that Nae Go-hyang’s visit was “emotionally overwhelming for many of us.”
“We’ve been our closest neighbors for a long time, but we’ve also been our most adversaries,” he said.
“It may sound too idealistic, but I hope these football events will help change that.”
Choi Hyo-kwang from North Korea was 94 years old and was participating in the match.
“I heard they were playing against Japan today, so I went to cheer them on,” he said.
“Above all, we just hope everyone stays healthy, avoids injuries and makes it all the way to victory.”
Negohyang and Tokyo had played each other earlier in the tournament, with Japan winning 4-0 in the first round in Myanmar.
The final was a very close match, with Tokyo dominating in the first half until Nae Gohyang scored a minute before the start of the match.
Jong-geum broke down the left side from a quick counterattack and squared the ball, giving Kim a goal.
In the second half, Tokyo looked for an equalizing goal, but Naegohyang comfortably absorbed the pressure and looked for another chance to advance.
North Korea ranks 11th in the FIFA women’s world rankings, far ahead of the men’s national team, which ranks 118th.
Tokyo won the precursor to the Champions League in 2019 and was aiming for their second Asian title.
