North Korea’s women’s soccer team did not play for four years because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but they are among the favorites to win the Asian Cup after enjoying massive age-level success.
The North Koreans in 2024 lifted the FIFA Women’s U-17 World Cup in the Dominican Republic and then in November last year defended their title in Morocco.
They also triumphed at the Women’s U-20 World Cup in Colombia in September 2024, giving them a remarkable three world titles in just more than a year.
Photo: AFP
Now their senior team are preparing for the Women’s Asian Cup in Australia, which starts today.
They have been drawn in a first-round group with Uzbekistan, China and Bangladesh, and are seen as one of the favorites for the title.
“I think it’s a different kind of football than many other Asian teams, they are very physical, they can run and run and run and they have good quality players,” Japan coach Nils Nielsen said. “I think they have been dominating in youth football on the world scene. It hasn’t quite reached the A team yet, but it’s getting there.”
North Korea are one of Asia’s most successful women’s teams and have won the continental title three times, all in the 2000s.
Their momentum was checked when they were banned from FIFA 2015 Women’s World Cup qualifying for failed doping tests, and they did not play any games from 2019 to 2023 due to the pandemic.
They showed no sign of rust when they returned at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, taking the silver medal after losing in the final to Japan.
They came close to qualifying for the Paris Olympics, missing out to Japan again in a play-off.
Lee Jung-woo, a senior lecturer at the University of Edinburgh who specializes in sport and politics, said the foundation of the Pyongyang International Football School in 2013 has helped North Korea to remain competitive despite the disruptions.
“This is somewhere where, from a very early age to high school, they systematically train both men’s and women’s players,” he said. “It’s like a state-sponsored boarding school where they systematically foster football players.”
North Korea are likely to field a blend of youth and experience as they make their first Asian Cup appearance since 2010.
Their star player is forward Kim Kyong-yong, who was the top scorer at the Asian Games with 12 goals and bagged nine in three games in Asian Cup qualifying.
Some players from North Korea’s successful age-group sides have stepped up to the senior team, but Japan coach Nielsen believes that is no guarantee of success.
“At youth level it is a big advantage that they have so many days together, they can train, play with boys all the time, so they are of course perhaps more ready there,” Nielsen said. “But taking the next step for them is about the A team and how to make that work on the international scene.”
Playing in Australia is unlikely to faze the North Korean players, who receive “political training” to cope with being in a foreign country, Lee said.
He said the North Korean government sees sport as “one of the few channels through which they can interact with the international community.”
Results would be keenly followed back home in Pyongyang, where Lee says male and female professional athletes are treated with respect.
“If they win the competition, they will use it as political propaganda in a domestic situation,” he said. “At the same time, North Korea will consider it as another achievement in sport diplomacy as well, because those kind of victories attract positive international attention.”
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