The Japanese FA has asked FIFA to investigate after North Korean U17 players punched their opponents’ hands during pre-match handshakes in their last-16 meeting in Qatar.
The Japanese FA have appealed to FIFA for action after North Korean footballers threw punches at their players instead of offering handshakes. The two nations clashed in the last-16 of the U17 World Cup in Qatar on Tuesday.
A number of North Korean youngsters swerved their customary pre-match courtesies of handshakes as the teams lined up, opting instead to strike their opponents’ hands with force. Footage of the shocking scenes has spread like wildfire online, showing Japanese players initially approaching their rivals with raised hands ready for the traditional high-fives and handshakes.
But as they progressed down the line, things turned nasty, with multiple players greeting them with aggressive punches. Despite the unsporting behaviour going unpunished by match officials on the day, the Japanese FA has lodged a formal complaint with FIFA
“We would like to ask FIFA for a decision,” a spokesman told Chunichi, as quoted by the Mirror. Japan had the last laugh, defeating North Korea and booking a place in the quarter-finals.
Jelani McGhee opened the scoring for Japan in the fourth minute, before Ri Hyok Gwang levelled proceedings in the second half. Japan displayed nerves of steel from 12 yards to triumph 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out at the Aspire Zone, booking their place in the final eight of the U17 World Cup.
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Nevertheless, their tournament journey ended in Friday’s fixtures, falling to a 1-0 defeat against Austria. As a result, Austria will meet Italy on Monday, while Portugal and Brazil are now set to clash in a mirroring match to determine the tournament final.
The final is scheduled for Thursday, November 27, at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha. Meanwhile, the senior North Korean national team failed to qualify for next summer’s World Cup in North America.
They finished last in Group A in the third round of qualification with just three points, while Iran and Uzbekistan secured their places in the competition with respective first and second-place finishes.
The last time that North Korea participated in the tournament was at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. They ended up bottom of Group G after suffering losses to Brazil (2-1), Ivory Coast (3-0), and Portugal (7-0).
The only other time North Korea qualified for the tournament was in 1966, when they were eliminated in the quarter-finals by Portugal. England emerged as champions that year – clinching their first and to date only World Cup title with a 4-2 victory over West Germany after extra time at Wembley.
In related news, Thomas Tuchel is hoping to lead the Three Lions to victory at next year’s tournament in North America. England secured their place in the competition by winning all of their qualifiers against Albania, Latvia, Andorra and Serbia.
They also managed to keep a clean sheet throughout their campaign. After qualifying for the 2026 World Cup, Tuchel said: “It will be very, very tough for me to not have a match until March. They have been outstanding.
“The level of detail cannot always be right. But the commitment to accept mistakes, the commitment after ball losses…to put the head down, to just run; run it off. This has been outstanding through the last camps and I think you can feel it..
“This is what I talked about, and I hope that somehow we make it so that you watch this team and you feel like; ‘Wow. They really mean it.’
“It’s a privilege to work with these players because I love their character and love their attitude, and how they are shaped, so this I knew – and today I could say everything played out perfectly because from the first camp, I could feel the energy.
“We had a little dip in summer, but then the way we reacted and built from there in the three camps was just outstanding, so it’s a privilege every day, so full credit to the players for their commitment, and it makes me, of course, very happy and proud.”