hankyoreh

By Jeong Nam-ku, Tokyo Correspondent　

The fifth group C qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil saw Japan and North Korea face off for the first time in years on Tuesday. The match was also notable for its venue of Kim Il-sung Stadium in Pyongyang.

Endless waves of cheers erupted from the crowd of 50 thousand packing the seats of Kim Il-sung Stadium. The North Korean fans held up pieces of fabric to spell “Win, Choson” in yellow letters against a red background. The cameras barely managed to capture the 150 Ultra Nippon visitors who had flown in from Japan. But the tension and excitement were evident in the voice of the announcer from Japan’s TBS network relaying the match.

Held in Pyongyang at 4 p.m. Tuesday, the fifth Group C qualifying match for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil between North Korea and Japan was a very special encounter between two countries that have been out of contact for many years. The Japanese team’s away game in the North Korean capital comes fully 22 years after a 1989 qualifying match for the World Cup in Italy. It was the first time in history that a Japanese television network gave a live broadcast of a match from Pyongyang.

The war of nerves between the two teams began before the match started. North Korea limited the number of Japanese supporters to 150 people and placed strict restrictions on the admission of Japanese journalists, accepting only around ten of fifty applicants. The immigration screening on Monday, the eve of the match, was also extremely rigorous. Twenty-three Japanese players arrived at Pyongyang International Airport by way of Beijing at 3 p.m., but it would take until after 7 p.m. for all of the screening and baggage inspections to be completed. The Japanese team was only able to practice for about one hour under dark conditions, beginning three hours later than scheduled.

Japan also barred its supporters from carrying more than 100 thousand yen ($1,297) because of the U.N. Security Council sanctions against North Korea, and dispatched a large number of Foreign Ministry employees, citing the fact that North Korea was a “risk area.”

But the increased closeness between the two sides as a result of the qualifying match was evident. Tokyo temporary lifted an order on its citizens to refrain from visiting North Korea so that supporters could visit to cheer on the team. The country also permitted the entry of North Korea‘s International Olympic Committee member Chang Ung back in July. This came four years and nine months after Japan effected a prohibition on the entry of people with North Korean nationality in October 2006 as an independent measure of sanctions for North Korea’s nuclear test.

Four of the athletes in Tuesday‘s match were ethnic Koreans living in Japan. Jong Tae-se, An Yong-hak, and Ryang Yong-gi played for North Korea, while Lee Tadanari played for Japan.

The North Korean team, already nearly certain to be eliminated from the final preliminary round, secured a 1-0 victory, with the North Korean fans’ one-sided cheers, avenging a 1-0 loss in the previous encounter with Japan.　

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]