Thailand to host Malaysia-North Korea soccer qualifier
Thailand agreed to host an Asian Cup qualifying match between Malaysia and North Korea next month, Asia’s football governing body announced on November 1, after the match was postponed several times over a diplomatic row and security concerns between the two latter countries.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said in a statement that it had picked Thailand to serve as a “neutral venue” for the two-part qualifier, scheduled for November 10 and 13, and chose a sports venue in the city of Buriram in northeastern Thailand for the match, the I-Mobile Stadium.
“We are extremely grateful for the continued support by the Football Association of Thailand in agreeing to play host for these two matches,” AFC General Secretary Windsor Paul John said in the statement, adding that Malaysia and North Korea will be shouldering all the expenses.
The match was originally due to have been played in March in North Korea’s capital Pyongyang, but was rescheduled after bilateral ties cooled in the aftermath of the killing of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged and elder half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The elder Kim was poisoned on February 13 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, allegedly by North Korean intelligence agents, which resulted in a diplomatic stand-off at one point between the two countries.
It was postponed another time in late September after Malaysia banned its citizens from travelling to Pyongyang, citing heightened security concerns on the Korean Peninsula.
Both countries are struggling in Group B of qualifying for the Asian Cup finals, which will be played in the United Arab Emirates in 2019. Currently, Lebanon leads the group and is on the verge of securing its place at the finals while Hong Kong is in second, three points ahead of North Korea, with Malaysia bottom.
Thailand agreed to host an Asian Cup qualifying match between Malaysia and North Korea next month, Asia’s football governing body announced on November 1, after the match was postponed several times over a diplomatic row and security concerns between the two latter countries. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said in a statement that it had picked Thailand to serve as a “neutral venue” for the two-part qualifier, scheduled for November 10 and 13, and chose a sports venue in the city of Buriram in northeastern Thailand for the match, the I-Mobile Stadium. “We are extremely grateful for the continued support...
Thailand agreed to host an Asian Cup qualifying match between Malaysia and North Korea next month, Asia’s football governing body announced on November 1, after the match was postponed several times over a diplomatic row and security concerns between the two latter countries.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said in a statement that it had picked Thailand to serve as a “neutral venue” for the two-part qualifier, scheduled for November 10 and 13, and chose a sports venue in the city of Buriram in northeastern Thailand for the match, the I-Mobile Stadium.
“We are extremely grateful for the continued support by the Football Association of Thailand in agreeing to play host for these two matches,” AFC General Secretary Windsor Paul John said in the statement, adding that Malaysia and North Korea will be shouldering all the expenses.
The match was originally due to have been played in March in North Korea’s capital Pyongyang, but was rescheduled after bilateral ties cooled in the aftermath of the killing of Kim Jong-nam, the estranged and elder half-brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The elder Kim was poisoned on February 13 at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, allegedly by North Korean intelligence agents, which resulted in a diplomatic stand-off at one point between the two countries.
It was postponed another time in late September after Malaysia banned its citizens from travelling to Pyongyang, citing heightened security concerns on the Korean Peninsula.
Both countries are struggling in Group B of qualifying for the Asian Cup finals, which will be played in the United Arab Emirates in 2019. Currently, Lebanon leads the group and is on the verge of securing its place at the finals while Hong Kong is in second, three points ahead of North Korea, with Malaysia bottom.
