Rare football match South North Korea is sold out within twelve hours

Tickets in South Korea for a rare match against a visiting North Korean team sold out in half a day, the Seoul Football Association said AFP on Friday.

All 7,087 general admission tickets for the May 20 match between home team Suwon FC Women and Naegohyang Women’s FC were purchased within about 12 hours of going on sale on Tuesday, a Korea Football Association official said.

The two sides will meet in the semi-finals of the Women’s Asian Champions League in the city of Suwon, about 35 kilometers south of Seoul.

It will be the first time that a sports team from isolated and nuclear-armed North Korea has played in the neighboring South since 2018.

The two Koreas technically remain at war because the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice and not a peace treaty.

Because the Champions League is a club competition, national flags and anthems will not be used during the match, according to local reports.

There will be no away fans, because North Koreans are generally not allowed in the South.

Seoul’s Unification Ministry said it will provide 300 million won ($200,000) to support South Korean civic groups that want to cheer on both teams during the match.

Naegohyang’s selection will arrive in South Korea by plane from Beijing on Sunday.

The winner of the semi-final will advance to the final of Asia’s top women’s club competition in Suwon on May 23, against Australia’s Melbourne City or Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza.

North Korea has traditionally been strong in women’s football, especially at youth level, where it has won several World Cups in recent years.

Published on May 15, 2026