Seoul to approve N. Korean football team's visit upon KFA request

▲ Members of the starting lineup for Naegohyang Women's FC pose for a photo before taking on Ho Chi Minh City Women's FC in the clubs' quarterfinal match at the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League at Lao National Stadium KM16 in Vientiane, Laos, on March 28, 2026, in this file photo captured from the AFC's website. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

S Korea-NK football team

Seoul to approve N. Korean football team's visit upon KFA request

SEOUL, May 7 (Yonhap) -- The unification ministry said Thursday it will approve a planned visit by a North Korean women's football team to South Korea, based on information submitted by the Korean Football Association (KFA).

Pyongyang-based Naegohyang Women's FC is set to travel to Suwon, some 30 kilometers south of Seoul, on May 20 to face Suwon FC Women in the semifinals of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women's Champions League. It will mark the first appearance by a North Korean athletic team on South Korean soil in more than seven years.

Under the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act, North Korean nationals must receive individual government approval to enter South Korea.

A ministry official said the KFA has yet to submit the necessary application as of Thursday morning.

On another front, the ministry said while it respects South Korean civic groups' support for the visiting team, it advised against displaying the Korean unification flag at the match.

The flag, which features a blue silhouette of the Korean Peninsula, has been previously used to show support for a unified Korean team at international sporting events.

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