The first match of the Paris Olympics Asian Final Qualifiers, in which Japan's women's soccer team will face North Korea, is an unusual situation in which the venue has not been decided even four days before the match, but Norio Sasaki of the Japan Football Association said: The chairman revealed that he had been contacted by the Asian Football Confederation that they were planning to hold the tournament in Saudi Arabia.
The final Asian qualifying match, in which Japan will play against North Korea, will be held in a home-and-away format, and the first away match was originally scheduled to be held in Pyongyang, North Korea, on the 24th of this month, but earlier this month, The Asian Federation had suggested that North Korea consider holding the match at a neutral site, citing difficulties in preparing for the match.
After that, coordination between the Asian Confederation and North Korea proceeded, but it was difficult to proceed, and it is an unusual situation in which the venue was not decided even on the 20th, four days before the match.
Regarding this, Japan Football Association Women's Committee Chairman Sasaki revealed the latest situation to the press in Chiba City, where the Japanese national team Nadeshiko Japan is holding a training camp.
In this discussion, Chairperson Sasaki said, ``We received information from the Asian Federation that they are preparing to hold the event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and we have been instructed to prepare for that.''
The players and staff announced plans to depart Japan on two separate flights on the night of the 20th and arrive in Japan.
On the other hand, there has been no communication from the Asian Federation that the venue has been officially decided, so Chairman Sasaki said, ``Although I am worried, we have no choice but to proceed with preparations assuming that the match will be held.''