First Inter-Korean Women's Football Club Match in South Korea: Suwon FC Faces North Korea's Naegohyang in AWCL Semifinals

7 p.m. on May 20 at Suwon Sports Complex

Suwon FC suffered a 0-3 defeat in last year's group stage meeting

Squad strengthened with Ji So-yeon and Kim Hye-ri joining Suwon FC

The first-ever inter-Korean women's football club match will take place in South Korea.

Suwon FC Women of the WK League will face Naegohyang Women's Football Club (Naegohyang) from North Korea in the semifinals of the 2025-2026 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Women’s Champions League (AWCL) at Suwon Sports Complex at 7 p.m. on May 20. The AWCL is Asia’s top-tier women’s club football tournament, which officially launched in the 2024-2025 season after a pilot period under the name "AFC Women's Club Championship."

Under the leadership of coach Park Gil-young, Suwon FC claimed the WK League title for the first time in 14 years in the 2024 season, earning its first-ever berth in the continental club competition. Suwon FC finished third in Group C with one win, one draw, and one loss in the group stage of this tournament, which took place in November last year. At the time, 12 teams were divided into three groups, and Suwon FC advanced to the quarterfinals by securing the highest points among all third-place teams.

Suwon FC Women player Ji So-yeon, participating in the AFC Women's Champions League (AWCL) semifinal tournament, is training at the auxiliary stadium of Suwon World Cup Stadium in Paldal-gu, Suwon, on the 19th. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Earlier this year, Suwon FC strengthened its roster by re-signing Ji So-yeon, a "living legend" of Korean women's football, and bringing in national team defender Kim Hye-ri and forward Choi Yu-ri. In the quarterfinals held in Wuhan, China, in March, Suwon FC defeated Wuhan Jiangda, the inaugural AWCL champions from China, with a commanding 4-0 victory to advance to the semifinals. During that quarterfinal, Ji So-yeon scored the opening and winning goal, and Kim Hye-ri added the decisive goal.

With Suwon FC's semifinal opponent set as North Korea’s Naegohyang, the first inter-Korean women’s football club match on South Korean soil has materialized. It is the first time in eight years that North Korean athletes are participating in a sports event held in South Korea, since the 2018 International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Tour Grand Finals in Incheon. In terms of football, it marks the first visit by North Korean players in 12 years, since the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. This is also the first time a North Korean women’s club team is visiting South Korea.

Naegohyang, based in Pyongyang and founded in 2012, emerged as a rising powerhouse by winning the league in 2022—its first title in ten years—after defeating the traditionally strong April 25 team, which is run by the North Korean military.

While Suwon FC qualified directly for the group stage as the WK League champions, Naegohyang advanced to the tournament through the qualifying stage. In the qualifying round, Naegohyang dominated Group D with three wins, scoring 23 goals and conceding none.

In the main tournament’s group stage, Suwon FC and Naegohyang were both placed in Group C and had already faced each other once. In the second group match held in Myanmar in November last year, the first-ever inter-Korean clash in an AFC-sanctioned event took place, with Suwon FC suffering a heavy 0-3 defeat. Suwon FC conceded consecutive goals in the second half to Park Ye-gyeong and Ri Su-jeong (who scored twice). Suwon FC was also outshot, with only four attempts compared to Naegohyang’s 17.

Naegohyang (two wins, one loss) finished second in Group C, behind Japan’s Tokyo Verdy Beleza (two wins, one draw), to advance to the quarterfinals. Given that Suwon FC has strengthened its squad by signing Ji So-yeon and others since their defeat to Naegohyang in November, a different match is expected this time.

If Suwon FC defeats Naegohyang, it will become the first Korean team to reach the final of the tournament. Last season, Incheon Hyundai Steel, representing the WK League, failed to reach the final after losing to Australia’s Melbourne City in the semifinals.

Reaching the final guarantees at least the runner-up prize of $500,000 (approximately 750 million won). The winner of the Melbourne City vs. Tokyo Verdy Beleza match will face the victor of Suwon FC vs. Naegohyang in the final at 2 p.m. on May 23 at Suwon Sports Complex, with a championship prize of $1 million at stake.

Choi Hwi-young, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is scheduled to attend the semifinal match between Suwon FC and Naegohyang. A Ministry official stated, "Considering that this is an international tournament sanctioned by the AFC and a Korean club has reached the semifinals, the Minister decided to attend as the head of the relevant ministry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.