Prior to this tournament, the North Korean soccer team had been wiped out of the world rankings due to their long absence from FIFA competitions, dropping to the bottom of the group, the fifth slot. However, in their three matches in the first round, they unexpectedly overcame two West Asian powerhouses in a row to take a firm hold on top of the table.
Although the DPRK still have to face Jordan, given that Hong Kong, Iran and Syria all have three points, they have a theoretical chance to tie the DPRK with two games to go, but in the event of a tie, the winner will be determined by the teams' head-to-head records. The DPRK have won all three of their matches and have therefore locked up their place in the group ahead of schedule, which is a remarkable achievement.
Since returning to the international soccer stage, the performance of the DPRK women's soccer team has been remarkable. They won the previous Women's World Youth Championship, and have reached the last eight of the current U17 Women's World Cup. Although the men's soccer team has not been as impressive as the women's, they have also won against strong teams such as Iran and made it to the 18th round of the World Qualification Tournament, showing their extraordinary strength.
The North Korean soccer team has once again proved to the world that soccer is fascinating. While advanced concepts, tactics and more high-level tournaments are crucial to raising the level of soccer, a strong will and relentless training can make a team perform equally well. Although the DPRK team's closed training and lack of experience in professional tournaments may limit their ceiling, their underlying strength is still enough to remain at the top level in Asia, after all, the overall level of Asian soccer is relatively low.
