The Korean Derby: A Game of Two Halves

The two Koreas have had their fair share of bouts in the sporting arena, but what stands out among all others is their rivalry in the beautiful game. In what some regard as one of Asia’s fiercest fixtures, I ask the question, can such a rivalry create a platform for Korean camaraderie?

Folks, forget El Clásico, the matchup between Spanish giants Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona. Forget the Manchester Derby, where Manchester United take on arch nemeses Manchester City. And especially, forget the high-tensional Brazil v Argentina games. All of those are, of course, peanuts compared to the Korean Derby; a fixture that is deeply ingrained within the historical context of an ever-lasting war. A war based on ideological differences between the East and West. Which ultimately, divided the Korean peninsula into a ‘North’ and a ‘South’.

“We need to make the most of the upcoming Asian Games as a precious opportunity to improve relations between the South and North.”

Young Koreans today may not remember the arduous times that the Korean War left behind, but they certainly can feel it with the legacy of the North-South rivalry. Fortunately, frictions between the two countries can be released harmlessly through the medium and outlet of sport. In fact, sport can indeed help to build bridges between the two Koreas. This is something that both the North & the South have expressed interest in.

North Korean cheerleaders in Hanbok. Photo: Lee Jin-Man/AP

With the North (Kim Jong-Un) saying, “The participation of the DPRK’s players in the 17th Asian Games offers an important occasion in improving the relations between the north and the south and removing distrust between them,” as quoted by the North’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). And the South (Rep. Kim Moo-sung, chairman of South Korea’s governing party) saying, “We need to make the most of the upcoming Asian Games as a precious opportunity to improve relations between the South and North.”

Today, it’s quite an understatement to say that Korea DPR (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) share a complicated relationship. However on the pitch, this often amounts to a high-tensional 90-minutes of football whenever the two countries are pitted together.

The two Koreas first clashed in an fiercely held 0–0 stalemate for the 1978 Asian Games finals in Bangkok , where both teams ended up sharing a gold.

However soon after, South Korea began taking the lead in future encounters. It was only after 12 years that North Korea won their first derby against the South in an international friendly to a home crowd in Pyongyang, North Korea. Since then, the two men’s side have locked horns a total of 15 times with the South winning 7 times, the North winning once, and both teams drawing 7 times.

The women’s team on the other hand, have met 13 times. And almost inversely to the men’s team, met in 1990 with a tremendous 7–0 win for the North. The North’s women’s team have registered 11 wins from the Korean derby, while South Korea have only won and drew once.

A recent gaff at the 2012 London Olympics involved a South Korean flag presented alongside a North Korean player, and this was enough to send the North Korean women’s team storming off the pitch.

The South Korea flag displayed beside North Korea footballer Song Hui Kim. The Olympic football match was delayed for an hour while the correct flag was reinstated. Photograph: Reuters

After several apologies and a scramble to placate the North Koreans, the women’s team went on to win their opening match. Victorious as they were, this wasn't enough to compensate for the damage done to the North’s women team, according to coach Ui Gun-sin. “I just want to stress once again that our players’ images and names can’t be shown alongside the South Korea flag,” he said.

But with this considered, how can friendship between the two Koreas be spurred out of such rivalry? Firstly the important thing to appreciate is that the Korean derby is no “Asian Peterborough-Northamptonshire” in the sense that Korean fans do not attempt to emulate the rivalry of their teams off the pitch. This is another major aspect that makes the Korean Derby unique. And there is no better example of this than the FIFA World Cup, where South Koreans are known to enthusiastically cheer on North Korean players in the international stage (and vice versa).

“They [North Koreans] would prefer South Korea to win against anyone else, unless they’re playing them. They’re cheering for Koreans” tells Glyn Ford, a former visiting professor of Tokyo University.

“The success made by the team is a striking demonstration of the advantages and tenacity of the Korean nation to the world”

For the 2002 FIFA World Cup (hosted in Japan & South Korea), North Korea withdrew from qualification. And despite abstaining, the North publicly expressed their support for South Korea in several articles printed in the The People’s Korea, a local state-run newspaper of North Korea. One article even published Ri Gwan Gun’s (the then chairman of the DPRK Football Association) open letter of congratulations to the South Korean Football Association after they finished 4th overall. The furthest an Asian team (to this date) has ever reached in a World Cup finals tournament.

“I congratulate the football team of south Korea on its great success in the World Cup”, writes Ri. “The success made by the team is a striking demonstration of the advantages and tenacity of the Korean nation to the world.”

However with all the talks of cultural bonding among all things, there is the risk of such sporting events to be hijacked by politically-motivated groups.

“I’m worried about those jongpuk who will use this inter-Korean game to stir up sentiment in favor of a North-South Korean conflict” says Yoo In-geun, a representative of the Korea Parent Federation (a conservative South Korean organization) as he handed political flags of his own.

Jongpuk, which literally means ‘to follow North’, is a term used by conservatives in South Korea to describe North Korean sympathizers (or generally individuals with a left-leaning tendency).

Members of the Naver Unification Cafe, an online pro-unification group, hold banners calling for unification. Photo: NK News

During home games, the South Korean fans vastly outnumber North Korean fans (who are mostly made up of Japanese citizens with North Korean descent). Nevertheless, unlike the usual supporters of both the North and South, pro-unionists (above) mainly cheer both sides during derbies in the hope of the match ending in a tie.

“I hope everyone fights hard and the game ends in a draw,” the member of a pro-unification group said before a game held in South Korea.

Interestingly enough, during games pro-union supporters can often be seen holding sky-blue placards (the colour used for unification by both Koreas) in the stands. Of course, this evades the rule of not showing political messages during international sports games. However for members of the Hyanglin Presbyterian Church who held a banner saying, “From Mt. Pakedu to Mt. Halla, North and South Korea is one!”, KFA (Korea Football Association) officials were quick to enforce the rule of confiscating all banners that “portray political messages.”

However you wish you see it, the Korean Derby has long lasted as a must-see matchup between two great sporting rivals, which reminds on-lookers of a nation that was once united. Of course, regardless of its nature, inter-Korean events generally attract large crowds among Koreans and foreigners alike. And with each generation comes an opportunity to renew old friendships, and break apart from past grudges, which hopefully can reflect on the political table. And what better medium is there to achieve this than sports?

“There should be more of these events where we can all get along and be happy. We are, after all, one people,” tells an elderly South Korean fan in his eighties.

And with this, I say: Next time you attend a Korean Derby, take a look around the stands. There are no enemies here. Just good old-fashioned rivals.