North Korea Withdraws From 2026 World Cup Qualification
Lowest-Ranked Team to Qualify Since 1993 Cancels Matches
AFC Confirms Withdrawal, Leaving Organizers Scrambling
With a 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. However, the team has now abruptly canceled its 2026 World Cup qualifying match with Japan, leaving organizers scrambling.
The news comes just hours after North Korea lost to Japan in Tokyo on Thursday. Japan scored after just 90 seconds and held on to win the match. The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has since confirmed that North Korea has officially pulled out of qualification for the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
The cancellation of the match has left organizers frantically trying to rearrange the schedule. The AFC has yet to announce whether it will award Japan the three points from the forfeited match, or if it will reschedule the fixture at a later date.
North Korea's withdrawal from qualification is a major blow to the team's hopes of reaching the World Cup for the first time since 2010. The team has never won a match at the World Cup and has only reached the knockout stages once, in 1966.
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