South Korea on course for 2026 World Cup while rivals North Korea struggle
A 1-0 defeat by Kyrgyzstan rocked North Korea while South Korea are on course for their 11th successive qualification
In June 2009, South Korea had qualified for the World Cup by the time Iran came to Seoul (and produced that protest) but Park Ji-sung’s late strike secured a 1-1 draw. It was a goal more celebrated by the North Korea players watching in their hotel in Riyadh before their game with Saudi Arabia.
“Park Ji-sung gave us the best-ever assist,” the DPRK striker Jong Tae-se told me in an interview with the Guardian a few months later. “He gave us a great chance. It was so exciting. We knew that we only needed a draw and I had faith that we could do the job in Saudi Arabia.” It ended 0-0 and DPRK made it to South Africa and as well as the delight in Pyongyang, there was happiness in Seoul.
