2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers: South Korea to host North Korea for qualifiers

South Korea will host South Korea for a series of qualifiers and the Asian Cup later this year, the Asian Football Confederation said on Friday. South Korea, which reached the semi-finals of the 2002 World Cup on home soil, is one of eight countries hosting their respective Asian qualification groups in a new format intended to reduce coronovirus risk. China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Japan are among the other hosts for the postponed games, which will be played from 31 May to 15 June.

In October 2019, the two Koreas drew 0–0 in a former Kovid World Cup qualifier in Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, where fans and foreign media were intercepted and there was no live TV broadcast.

It was the first competitive game between Korean male teams organized by North. In their last World Cup qualifier in South Korea, the home team won 1–0 in Seoul in 2009.

Elsewhere, China will host Syria, the Philippines, the Maldives and Guam in Group A, while Kuwait will host the Group B Games, which also include Australia, Jordan, Nepal and Taiwan.

Group C countries will play in Iraq, Iran, Hong Kong and Cambodia Bahrain, while Group D nations Uzbekistan, Singapore, Yemen and Palestine are in Saudi Arabia.

Qatar will host Group E of Oman, Afghanistan, India and Bangladesh, with Japan welcoming Group F rivals Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Myanmar and Mongolia.

Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia will play in Group G in the UAE, while South Korea will host Group H which includes Turkmenistan, Lebanon and Sri Lanka as well as North Korea.

Asia’s World Cup qualifiers continue from 2019 onwards after the coronovirus was eliminated during last year’s schedule.

North and South Korea are technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean War ended a ceasefire rather than a peace treaty, and the peninsula is divided by a heavily fortified demilitarized zone.

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However, sporting opportunities have previously helped improve relations, most notably the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, which caused an unprecedented warming of relations.

The 2022 World Cup will be held in Qatar from November 21 to December 18 next year, while the next Asian Cup is in China from June 16 to July 16, 2023.