The Korea Institute for National Unification (KINU) has assessed that the upcoming visit of a North Korean women's football team on Nov. 17 is unlikely to serve as a catalyst for inter-Korean dialogue.
"This matter is better understood as a limited inter-Korean contact that occurred within the institutional framework of international sports, rather than as a turning point in inter-Korean relations," Lee Woo-tae, senior research fellow at KINU's Unification Policy Research Division, said in a report titled "The Visit of North Korea's Naegohyang Women's Football Club and Its Significance" released Tuesday. While past inter-Korean sports exchanges have at times paved the way for improved relations, Lee explained that the North Korean team's visit is largely driven by fulfilling obligations to participate in an international tournament and showcasing the competitiveness of North Korean women's football. The political burden of visiting South Korea is also relatively low given that it is a club team, not a national team.
North Korea's Naegohyang Women's Football Club will arrive at Incheon International Airport on Nov. 17 to participate in the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League (AWCL), to be held in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, on Nov. 20. In the semifinals, Australia's Melbourne City FC will face Japan's Tokyo Verdy Beleza, while Suwon FC Women will play against Naegohyang Women's Football Club. This marks the first inter-Korean match between women's football club teams. The AWCL was launched by the AFC last year on the back of growing popularity of women's football, with champion clubs from women's football leagues across Asia participating. The tournament offers $1 million (approximately 1.51 billion won) in prize money for the winner and $500,000 for the runner-up.
"The possibility of North Korea engaging in inter-Korean dialogue on the occasion of this visit is not high at this point," Lee said. "North Korea is likely to seek to limit this event strictly to participation in an AFC international tournament, rather than framing it as inter-Korean exchange." The visit marks the first time North Korean athletes have traveled to South Korea since the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, eight years ago.
Given these circumstances, Lee stressed that an appropriate response from the South Korean government is important. "Excessive hospitality toward the North Korean team could spark domestic political controversy, while an overly rigid or cold response could end up narrowing the potential for future contact in the sports arena," Lee noted.
