The Asian Football Confederation sent an inspection team to North Korea on the 2nd to investigate whether the match between Japan and North Korea could be held in the second Asian qualifying round of the Soccer World Cup, which will be held later this month.
The second Asian qualifying round for the 2026 Soccer World Cup will be held in a home-and-away format, and the away match, in which the Japanese national team will face the North Korean national team on the 26th of this month, will be held at the Kim Il Sung Stadium in the capital Pyongyang. However, the AFC (Asia Football Confederation) dispatched an inspection team to North Korea for two days to find out whether the match could be held in North Korea.
At the airport in Beijing, the capital of China, on the afternoon of the 2nd, an inspection team consisting of members from Vietnam, China, and other countries departed by air for North Korea.
The group plans to stay in the area until the 5th of this month and check out Kim Il Sung Stadium, hotels, etc.
The first match between Japan and North Korea in the women's Paris Olympics Asian final qualifying match held last month was originally scheduled to be played in Pyongyang, but the Asian Football Confederation canceled the match due to difficulties in preparing for the match. In an unusual situation, it was proposed that the match be held at a neutral venue, and three days before the match, it was officially announced that the match would be held in Saudi Arabia.