What happened to the North Korean football team?

Ever wondered if North Korea. Like all other nations of the world, has a national football side that is loved by the poepl? Ever wondered if football even exists as a pastime in such a controlled and heavily policed state? Well, never fear – I am here to give you a whirlwind tour through the history of the North Korea football team. 

1966 World Cup:

The North Korean National Football Team infamously nicknamed the Chollima was founded in 1945. Officially controlled by the DPR Korean Football Association. North Korea first joined the World Cup in 1966, beating Italy 1-0 becoming one of football’s biggest upsets, they progressed all the way to the quarter finals until they lost to Portugal 3-5 after the World Cup in 1966 the North Korean team rarely made appearances in any major sporting events although they remained strong in Asian competitions. After the World Cup they all returned to Pyongyang and were widely celebrated throughout the country.Pyongyang

2010 FIFA Wold Cup:

After qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, which was the first time North Korea participated since 1966, North Korea lost all their games; notably the heavy defeat to Portugal which ended with the score 7 - 0. This brought global attention to the North Korean team for a brief period, which soon faded due to the rapid shift of media focus to later stage matches and stronger teams. After this incident, many reports claimed that players faced severe punishment and public criticism due to the national embarrassment brought by their hilariously bad losses; though the North Korean government had denied all claims. Recently, North Korea hasn’t really participated in any major international football tournaments, though they did withdraw from the 2022 World Cup qualifiers due to Covid.

Conclusion:

Overall, North Korea is known for their discipline and defensive organisation; and their players and is known for being physically strong and tactically structured. They are mostly remembered for their hilarious 7-0 loss to Portugal and their 1966 World Cup run; and their mysterious lack of media access after their performance in the 2010 World Cup. 

Rumours: 

After the 2010 World Cup many rumours were speculated that the 7-0 loss to Portugal the players and some of the coaches were sent to labour camps and he head coach mysteriously disappearing but FIFA confirmed these rumours false.