North Korea's young women's football team received a thunderous homecoming after their title win at the 2024 Fifa U-20 World Cup in Colombia, AFP footage showed on Sunday.
The country's U-20 women squad returned home on Saturday after their 1-0 victory over Japan to claim the title in Bogotá, their third such victory after tournament wins in 2006 and 2016.
North Korea won the U20 Women’s World Cup.
— Veek-Thor 🫣 (@Veeekthorrr) September 27, 2024
These girls are ballers 🔥 pic.twitter.com/LBDRVUoLfB
The achievement has placed the isolated country on equal footing with powerhouses Germany and the United States.
The players were greeted by their families at the airport in Pyongyang, many overcome with joy, some in tears.
KOREA DPR ARE #U20WWC CHAMPIONS! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/mbXqr1QSrp
— FIFA Women's World Cup (@FIFAWWC) September 22, 2024
"I am really happy that we demonstrated to the full the honour of the country. We will continue to demonstrate the dignity of the country," said a visibly emotional Chae Un Yong, captain of the national team.
North korea u20 women football team won their third fifa world cup defeating Japan 1-0. They are so isolated in the world but won the cup in their own style and dominated the tournament with 100% win record. pic.twitter.com/TpdoaSgPNl
— Tashi (@hopefulhumanist) September 23, 2024
The players were then escorted onto an open truck decorated with flowers and painted with the North Korean flag, driving through the city as they waved to people on the streets.
"They extended thanks to the cheering citizens, reminding themselves of the time when they played games with the warm encouragement sent by all the people across the country," the official news agency KCNA reported.
AFP footage showed a large crowd of people gathering by the truck to shake the players' hands and wave national flags.
The U-20 Women's World Cup win followed years of the country's withdrawal from international sporting competitions due to the Covid pandemic.
North Korea's women's football team holds a strong foothold on the global stage, ranked ninth, in stark contrast to their male counterparts, who are ranked 111th.