Tickets for an exceptional match between a North Korean women’s team and a local South Korean club were completely sold out in half a day, the South Korean federation told AFP on Friday.
The 7,000 tickets for the May 20 match between the North Korean women’s team Naegohyang FC and the South Korean team Suwon FC were snapped up a dozen hours after going on sale on Tuesday, according to a South Korean football federation official.
The two teams will meet in the semi-finals of the Asian Women’s Champions League in the city of Suwon, about 35 kilometers south of Seoul.
This meeting will mark the first Southward trip by a North Korean sports team since 2018, from the reclusive nuclear-armed country.
The two Koreas are officially still at war, as the 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. Since the Champions League is a club competition, national flags and anthems will not be used during the match, according to local media.
There will also be no North Korean supporters, as North Koreans are generally not allowed to travel to the South.
The Naegohyang team is set to arrive in South Korea on Sunday by plane from Beijing.
The winners will face either the Australians from Melbourne City or the Japanese from Tokyo Verdy Beleza in the final, still in South Korea, on May 23.
North Korean national teams are among the most successful on the continent, with several international trophies in recent years, widely celebrated by state propaganda.
