A historic semifinal will take place in the Asian women’s Champions League this Wednesday. The tickets for the match between a North Korean women’s team and a local South Korean club were completely sold out in half a day, as reported by the South Korean football federation to AFP on Friday.
The match will be held in Suwon, about 35 kilometers south of Seoul, between the North Korean women’s team Naegohyang FC and the South Korean team Suwon FC. 7,000 tickets for the game were sold out within twelve hours of being released on Tuesday, according to a South Korean federation official.
This game will mark the first sporting visit to the South since 2018 by a North Korean team, a country known for its nuclear weapons. The two Koreas still remain officially at war, as the 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
Both teams will stay in the same hotel during their visit. As the Champions League is a club competition, national flags and anthems will not be used during the match, according to local media. North Korean supporters will not be present as they are generally not allowed to travel to the South.
South Korean law on national security prohibits possession or display of North Korean flags or playing their national anthem in public. South Koreans need approval from the Ministry of Unification before interacting with any North Korean. However, the visit of the North Korean team has been authorized, as confirmed by a government official to AFP, so it will not be illegal for South Koreans to greet their opponents.
The Naegohyang team is set to arrive in South Korea on Sunday from Beijing. They will stay at a hotel in Suwon, where the Suwon FC team also will stay. However, dining areas and schedules for the two teams will be separate, as reported by local press.
The winners of the semifinal will face either Melbourne City from Australia or Tokyo Verdy Beleza from Japan in the final, which will also take place in South Korea on May 23.
