WK League News

2024 WK League champions Suwon FC were knocked out of the 2025-26 AFC Women’s Champions League at Castle Park last night in a heartbreaking 2-1 semi-final defeat at the hands of North Korean side Naegohyang WFC. Naegohyang will face Tokyo Verdy Beleza in the final this Saturday.

After their title-winning league campaign two years ago, Suwon slumped in the 2025 WK League, but still managed to qualify (albeit narrowly) for the knockout stage of the AWCL. It was in the group stage of the tournament that Suwon first met Naegohyang, losing 0-3 in the first ever meeting between women’s football clubs from opposite sides of the 38th parallel.

With some significant additions to the squad during the winter transfer window, it was a very different Suwon team that travelled to Wuhan and beat defending champions Wuhan Jiangda 4-0 in the quarter finals back in March. South Korea’s bid to host the semi-finals and final set the stage for another historic match between Suwon and Naegohyang, as women’s teams from North and South Korea met on South Korean soil for the first time ever.

The teams walked out onto the pitch at Castle Park in horrendous conditions, with the rain well and truly set in, and the turf already churned up from the afternoon’s semi-final between Tokyo Verdy Beleza and Melbourne City, in which the Japanese side triumphed 3-1. The evening match was a sell-out, although the weather deterred some ticket holders on the day and the official attendance figure was 5763, still a huge number for a women’s football match in South Korea.

Despite playing in their regular home stadium, Suwon were drawn as the away team for this fixture, with the club’s loyal supporters cheering from the South stand. For much of the match, louder cheers could be heard from the 3000-strong ‘joint supporters group’, formed by civic groups in South Korea and financially supported by the country’s Unification Ministry. Their presence has caused anger among many football fans and members of the public, who have criticised the use of taxpayers’ money to fund this group. Some have echoed Suwon manager Park Gilyoung’s post-match frustrations, observing that the joint supporters seemed to be much more enthusiastic in their support for Naegohyang despite the stated aim of cheering for both teams. Many have said that the atmosphere at Castle Park was more akin to that of an away fixture.

Amid this challenging environment, Suwon were dominant in the first half. An early Kim Kyongyong goal was ruled out for offside, but the visitors had few other chances, whereas Suwon launched repeated attacks and kept their opponents’ defence under constant pressure. Attempts from Mileninha and Haruhi Suzuki were agonisingly denied by the goalpost, and the 0-0 scoreline at half-time was disappointing for the WK League side, given how much of the game they had controlled.

There was joy and relief for Suwon as Haruhi Suzuki finally broke the deadlock shortly after the break. Haruhi joined Suwon in January after spending the 2025 season with Incheon Hyundai. Since joining, she has been in excellent goal-scoring form, scoring her first for the club in the AWCL quarter-final, and netting four so far in the 2026 WK League.

However, the joy didn’t last long. Mere minutes later, Naegohyang were awarded a free kick close to Suwon’s box. There was little Suwon’s defence could do in the face of Ri Yujong’s precision delivery, guided into the net by a header from Choe Kumok, her jump perfectly timed. With the score level again and both teams desperately seeking a winner, the atmosphere only intensified. A fumbled clearance from Mileninha gifted Naegohyang an opportunity, and Kim Kyongyong took it, putting her team ahead, albeit with over 20 minutes left to play.

With the continuing heavy rain, the scoreline turned on its head, and the pressure of a crowd, and a stage, much larger than WK League sides are accustomed to, Suwon’s attacking play became messier. Meanwhile, Naegohyang’s players seemed to take strength from the situation, displaying steely determination as they worked hard to defend their lead. Suwon’s best opportunity came in the 79th minute when they were awarded a penalty kick. Captain Ji Soyun stepped up to the spot and succeeded in sending goalkeeper Pak Jugyong the wrong way, but sent the ball spinning wide. Ji dropped to her knees even before the ball crossed the line, knowing immediately that this could be a very costly mistake.

After seven minutes of second-half stoppage time, the match came to an end with the score still at 2-1. Despite the rain’s best attempts to mask them, there were visible tears of elation from the Naegohyang squad and tears of pain from Suwon’s players, coaches, and supporters. It was an absolutely gut-wrenching result for Park Gilyoung’s squad, who fought hard until the bitter end of this historic and symbolic match. With their AWCL hopes extinguished, the team has time to recover before returning to WK League action. Suwon are currently in fourth place, but only one point behind leaders Hwacheon KSPO with a game in hand. Their next match is on Saturday 30th May, when they travel to Incheon to take on the Red Angels, who themselves know a thing or two about losing an AWCL semi-final in heartbreaking fashion.

The AWCL final will be contested by Tokyo Verdy Beleza (Japan) and Naegohyang WFC (North Korea) at Castle Park this Saturday, 23rd May, with kickoff scheduled for 14:00 KST.