New dates announced for S. Korean women's Olympic football qualifiers

▲ In this file photo from Jan. 19, 2021, members of the South Korean women's national football team train at Gangjin Sports Complex in Gangjin, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, in preparation for Olympic qualifying matches against China. (Yonhap)

▲ In this file photo from Jan. 19, 2021, Colin Bell, head coach of the South Korean women's national football team, speaks to reporters before practice at Gangjin Sports Complex in Gangjin, 410 kilometers south of Seoul. (Yonhap)

▲ In this file photo from Jan. 19, 2021, members of the South Korean women's national football team train at Gangjin Sports Complex in Gangjin, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, in preparation for Olympic qualifying matches against China. (Yonhap)

football-Olympics

New dates announced for S. Korean women's Olympic football qualifiers

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, March 3 (Yonhap) -- Venues and new kickoff dates for South Korean women's Olympic football qualifying matches were announced on Wednesday, following multiple disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said the two-legged series between South Korea and China will take place on April 8 and 13.

Goyang Stadium in Goyang, just northwest of Seoul, will host the first leg on April 8 at 4 p.m. Then the second match will be at Suzhou Olympic Sports Center in China five days later, also at 4 p.m. local time (5 p.m. in South Korea).

The aggregate score will determine who will get to compete at the Tokyo Olympics in the summer.

South Korea and China had been scheduled to meet on Feb. 19 and Feb. 24, before COVID-19 once again threw a wrench into that plan.

Initially, the two countries were supposed to square off in February last year, but their matches were postponed multiple times during the global pandemic. After the Olympic Games themselves got postponed by a year, the football matches were rescheduled for early 2021.

South Korea are ranked 18th in the world, three spots below China. In 37 all-time meetings, South Korea have four wins, six draws and 27 losses against China.

Women's football made its Olympic debut in Atlanta in 1996, and South Korea, dubbed Taeguk Ladies, have never qualified for the event.

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