A North Korean athletic delegation will visit South Korea for the first time in eight years. The first-ever inter-Korean women's football club match has also been announced. The event is drawing heightened attention as inter-Korean communication has been blocked for eight years.
The Ministry of Unification said Tuesday that North Korea's Naegohyang Women's Football Club will visit South Korea to play the first-ever inter-Korean women's football club match. The Naegohyang Women's Football Club will arrive at Incheon International Airport on the 17th and participate in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League (AWCL) semifinal, to be held in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on the 20th. In the semifinals, Australia's Melbourne City FC will face Japan's Tokyo Verdy Beleza, while Suwon FC Women will face the Naegohyang Women's Football Club. The final will also be held in Suwon on the 23rd.
The AWCL is a tournament launched last year by the AFC amid the growing popularity of women's football, with champions from women's football leagues across Asia participating. A total of 12 teams are competing in the 2025-26 AWCL, with group stage matches held in Myanmar, Vietnam, and China since last year, followed by the semifinals and final in Suwon. The winner's prize is $1 million (approximately 1.51 billion won), while the runner-up prize is $500,000. Teams that fail to participate without clear justification face penalties such as fines or suspension of eligibility for a certain period.
If the Naegohyang Women's Football Club wins the semifinal, it will play the final on the 23rd and return to North Korea on the 24th. Since the Naegohyang Women's Football Club defeated Suwon FC Women 3-0 in the group stage last year, it is considered likely to advance to the final again this time.
One AFC practice is for competing teams to stay at the same accommodation. This time as well, the South and North Korean teams are reportedly scheduled to stay at the Novotel Ambassador Suwon Hotel. However, dining locations and movement routes are separated, making it unlikely that the South and North Korean teams will encounter each other. In addition, no exchange programs between the football clubs have yet been confirmed beyond this match.
In response, the Presidential Office said, "We welcome the Naegohyang Women's Football Club's participation in the AFC Women's Champions League semifinal," adding, "The government will cooperate with the AFC and Suwon FC to ensure the team can play the matches smoothly."
Whether this match can open the door to inter-Korean exchanges, which have been closed for the past eight years, remains uncertain. A Unification Ministry official explained, "The AFC notified the Korea Football Association of the Naegohyang Women's Football Club's visit to the South on the 1st, and the list of 39 visitors, including 27 players, was also delivered by the AFC to the Korea Football Association." In other words, there was no direct communication between the South and North Korean governments.
Regarding the possibility of high-ranking North Korean officials visiting the South, the Unification Ministry official said, "The visitor list does not include positions or titles, so we are still checking." The official added, "We welcome the North Korean athletic delegation visiting after about eight years," and "We will support the players so they can safely play the matches by communicating with the AFC and the Korea Football Association."
