North Korea’s women’s football team made a dominant start to their 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games campaign, cruising to a 10-0 victory over Bangladesh in their opening Group F match on Monday.
The North Koreans wasted little time asserting their superiority at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, racing to a seven-goal lead before half-time and leaving Bangladesh struggling to contain their attacking threat.
The emphatic win further underlined North Korea’s status as one of the favourites for the women’s football gold medal at the Games, following their impressive record in international youth competitions.
Striker Ri Song A, who was born and raised in Japan, featured in North Korea’s starting line-up and added to the scoreline in the second half.
The match also attracted strong support from pro-Pyongyang fans in Osaka. Several hundred supporters dressed in red sang and chanted throughout the game as they cheered the North Korean players to victory.
North Korea’s men’s and women’s teams had also received a warm welcome from supporters when they arrived for the Games last week, with fans waving flags as the players appeared in white blazers and pink ties.
More than 100 North Korean athletes are expected to compete in 14 sports at the 2026 Asian Games, which are being held in Nagoya-Aichi and are officially scheduled to open on September 19.
North Korea had suspended participation in international sporting events during the COVID-19 pandemic. The country returned to the Asian Games in China in 2023 and later competed at the Paris Olympics.
The North Korean women will face South Korea in a highly anticipated Group F clash on September 21.
Meanwhile, North Korea’s men’s football team will begin its Asian Games campaign against China on Wednesday.
