North Korea

North Korea

The Korea DPR national football team, representing North Korea, is one of Asia's historically competitive sides, governed by the DPR Korea Football Association. They notably qualified for and competed in the 1966 FIFA World Cup in England, reaching the quarter-finals in one of the tournament's greatest upsets, defeating Italy 1-0 in the group stage. Pak Doo-ik's goal against Italy became legendary in football history. North Korea returned to the World Cup in 2010 in South Africa but were eliminated in the group stage. The team has also competed in AFC Asian Cup qualifiers with mixed results. Due to political isolation, the team's participation in international competitions has been sporadic and limited. Despite these challenges, DPR Korea has maintained a football tradition and regularly fields competitive squads in AFC and FIFA competitions when permitted.