North Korea qualified and participated in the 1966 and 2010 FIFA World Cup.

In 1966, North Korea won the first round after competing against the Soviet Union, Chile, and Italy. North Korea progressed to the second round, thus making them the first Asian country to have qualified past the first round. However, they lost to Portugal in the quarter-finals. Seven players were consistently fielded during these matches.

North Korea was the lowest-ranking team to qualify for the 2010 World Cup and did not pass the group stage after losing in all three group matches.

North Korea had four top goalscorers in 1966, and only one goalscorer in the 2010 World Cup.

Prior to North Korea's debut in 1966, Korean Empire had entered qualification for the FIFA World Cup in 1930, 1934, and 1938 as part of Japan because Korea was occupied by Japan at that time. In later years, North Korea either withdrew (1970 and 1978), or did not enter or qualify for the World Cup.

Summary

1966 in England

After South Africa being disqualified and South Korea having withdrawn due to logistical reasons, North Korea had to compete in a play-off match against Australia in order to qualify, which they won 9–2 on aggregate.

In the third and decisive group match, North Korea beat title contenders Italy 1–0, eliminating them from the competition and advancing to the second stage. No team from Asia had ever progressed from the first round before, and the feat would not be repeated until 1994, when Saudi Arabia reached the Round of 16.

In the quarter-final against Portugal, North Korea managed to lead 3–0 after 22 minutes, but the game was turned around with a final score of 3–5, with Portuguese star player Eusébio scoring four goals.

2010 in South Africa

With a final pre-tournament FIFA ranking of 105th in the world, North Korea was the lowest-ranked team to qualify for the World Cup since the rankings began in 1993.

2010 was North Korea's first appearance at the World Cup since 1966. The draw placed North Korea in Group G. They played their first match against five-time winners Brazil on 15 June. Despite their best efforts, they were outmatched and lost 1–2. In their next game against Portugal on 21 June, they were defeated 0–7. Despite starting well (as against Brazil), their defensive and well-organized approach unraveled after Portugal scored on them. The Koreans lost their final match against Ivory Coast 0–3 on 25 June. Having lost all three group matches, they were knocked out, finishing at the bottom of Group G. It was reported that the small contingency of apparent North Korean football fans were actually Chinese people who bought tickets reserved for North Korean government officials. North Korea subsequently denied the report and claimed that the Chinese were small in number and that the government had permitted their travel.

Record at the FIFA World Cup

YearRoundPositionPldWD*LGFGA
Uruguay 1930Occupied by  Japan
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950 Did not enter
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966Quarter-finals8th411259
Mexico 1970Withdrew
West Germany 1974Did not qualify
Argentina 1978Withdrew
Spain 1982Did not qualify
Mexico 1986
Italy 1990
United States 1994
France 1998Did not enter
South Korea Japan 2002
Germany 2006Did not qualify
South Africa 2010 Group stage 32nd 3 0 0 3 1 12
Brazil 2014Did not qualify
Russia 2018
Qatar 2022Withdrew
Canada Mexico United States 2026To be determined
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total Quarter-finals 2/25 7 1 1 5 6 21
*Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out

By match

World Cup Round Opponent Score Result Venue Scorers
1966Group stage Soviet Union0–3LMiddlesbrough—
 Chile1–1DMiddlesbroughPak S.Z.
 Italy1–0WMiddlesbroughPak D.I.
Quarter-finals Portugal3–5LLiverpoolPak S.Z., Li D.W., Yang S.K.
2010Group stage Brazil1–2LJohannesburgJi Y.N.
 Portugal0–7LCape Town—
 Ivory Coast0–3LNelspruit—

Record by Opponent

FIFA World Cup matches (by team)
Opponent Wins Draws Losses Total Goals Scored Goals Conceded
 Brazil001112
 Chile010111
 Italy100110
 Ivory Coast001103
 Portugal0022312
 Soviet Union001103

England 1966

Group 4

Team Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts
 Soviet Union 3300616.006
 North Korea 3111240.503
 Italy 3102221.002
 Chile 3012250.401
Soviet Union 3–0 North Korea
Malofeyev 31', 88'
Banishevskiy 33'		 Report
Attendance: 22,000
Chile 1–1 North Korea
Marcos 26' (pen.) Report Pak Seung-zin 88'
Attendance: 16,000
North Korea 1–0 Italy
Pak Doo-ik 42' Report
Attendance: 18,000
Referee: Pierre Schwinte (France)

Quarter-finals

Portugal 5–3 North Korea
Eusébio 27', 43' (pen.), 56', 59' (pen.)
José Augusto 80'		 Report Pak Seung-zin 1'
Li Dong-woon 22'
Yang Seung-kook 25'
Attendance: 51,780

South Africa 2010

Group G

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  Brazil 3 2 1 0 5 2 +3 7 Advance to knockout stage
2  Portugal 3 1 2 0 7 0 +7 5
3  Ivory Coast 3 1 1 1 4 3 +1 4
4  North Korea 3 0 0 3 1 12 −11 0
Source: FIFA
Rules for classification: Tie-breaking criteria
Brazil 2–1 North Korea
Maicon 55'
Elano 72'		 Report Ji Yun-nam 89'
Attendance: 54,331
Portugal 7–0 North Korea
Meireles 29'
Simão 53'
Almeida 56'
Tiago 60', 89'
Liédson 81'
Ronaldo 87'		 Report
Attendance: 63,644
Referee: Pablo Pozo (Chile)
North Korea 0–3 Ivory Coast
Report Y. Touré 14'
Romaric 20'
Kalou 82'
Attendance: 34,763

Record players

Seven players have been fielded on all four matches in 1966, making them record World Cup players for their country:

Rank Player Matches
1 Han Bong-Zin4
Im Seung-Hwi4
Li Chan-myung4
Lim Zoong-Sun4
Pak Doo-Ik4
Pak Seung-Zin4
Shin Yung-Kyoo4

Top goalscorers

No. Name Goals World Cups
1Pak Seung-Zin21966
2 Pak Doo-Ik11966
Lee Dong-Woon11966
Yang Sung-Kook11966
Ji Yun-Nam12010

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Referee designations for matches 1–16" (PDF). FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 5 June 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 5, 2010. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
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