North Korea vs South Korea World Cup Qualifier Relocated to China

When World Cup qualifying resumes in Asia on March 26th, there’s arguably only one game worth watching. North Korea vs South Korea. Especially if the drama and tension on the field can match what’s been happening off the field.

The controversy so far: North Korea are the home team, but won’t allow South Korean to display their flag or sing their national anthem in the Kim Il-sung Stadium in Pyongyang. The proposed alternative of using a joint flag and a non-partisan Korean folk song was probably the best solution. Which is why it was way too optimistic.

So FIFA have stepped in and come with another alternative: a field trip to China. So North Korea vs South Korea will now be played at Hongkou Football Stadium in Shanghai, where both teams can wave their flags and sing their national anthems to their hearts content. But if I’m a North Korean football fan and my team loses this game, I’m thinking that my government sacrificed an important home field advantage over a rectangle of patterned material and a song.