Watch | Stone-faced winning AFC Champions League, then weeping with Kim Jong-Un: North Korean women’s football team’s emotional homecoming
Players and coaches of the Naegohyang Women’s FC and North Korea’s U-17 women’s national team met Kim Jong-Un ahead of a friendly match between the two sides on Monday,
The emotional scenes at home stood in contrast to the team's notably subdued appearance during their visit to South Korea, where the players had remained stone-faced throughout their stay. (Photo: Reuters) North Korean women’s footballers, who maintained a composed demeanour during their South Korea visit, were visibly emotional when they met with leader Kim Jong-Un back home following their continental title win.
Players and coaches of the Naegohyang Women’s FC and North Korea’s U-17 women’s national team met Kim Jong-Un ahead of a friendly match between the two sides on Monday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), North Korea’s state-run news outlet. Kim congratulated the squads and expressed hope for more titles in future competitions.
KCNA reported that Kim “warmly took the trustworthy women players, proud daughters of the motherland, into his arms” and posed for photographs with the teams before the match.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met Naegohyang Women’s FC, winners of the Asian Football Confederation Women’s Champions League last month in South Korea. The team were the first athletes to visit the South in eight years pic.twitter.com/IMHlQmEtTM
— Reuters (@Reuters) June 3, 2026
The road to the title
Naegohyang Women’s FC had earlier travelled to South Korea for an AFC Women’s Champions League fixture against Suwon FC Women, which they won, advancing to the final. They went on to defeat Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza by 1-0 to claim the championship title.
The championship carries a $1 million prize, but local media have reported that it remains unclear whether the funds can be transferred to North Korea under UN sanctions restrictions. The AFC has not publicly commented on the issue.
The Naegohyang players were the first North Korean athletes to visit South Korea in eight years, since the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics opening ceremony.
Contrasting reactions
The emotional scenes at home stood in contrast to the team’s notably subdued appearance during their visit to South Korea, where the players had remained stone-faced throughout their stay.
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