United Koreans in Japan football team
 | |
| Association | United Korean Football Association in Japan |
|---|---|
| Confederation | ConIFA |
| Head coach | An Yong-hak |
| Most caps | Shin Yong-ki (11) |
| Top scorer | Tae An-sung (4) |
| Home stadium | Akabane Park Stadium |
| First international | |
 Zainichi Korea 1–0 Székely Land  (Sukhumi, Abkhazia; 30 May 2016) | |
| Biggest win | |
 Ryūkyū 0–9 Zainichi Korea (Nakagusuku, Japan; 26 November 2016) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
Zainichi Korea 0–3 Kurdistan Region  (Sukhumi, Abkhazia; 31 May 2016) | |
| ConIFA World Football Cup | |
| Appearances | 2 (first in 2016) |
| Best result | Quarter-finals (7th), 2016 |
The United Koreans in Japan official football team represents the Korean population living in Japan, also known as Zainichi Koreans. The team represents players holding passports from both North Korea and South Korea. The team, run by the United Korean Football Association in Japan (UKFAJ), joined ConIFA in 2015, and played its first matches at the 2016 ConIFA World Football Cup.[1]
History
The national team grew out of the local football club for Koreans in Japan, FC Korea, which formed in 1961 and currently plays in the Kanto Soccer League, and is still the base of the national team. Upon its formation, it joined ConIFA, and became one of the Asian teams invited to play at the 2016 ConIFA World Football Cup on 9 January 2016. The team progressed to the quarter finals after beating Székely Land 1-0 in the group stages, but lost on penalties to Northern Cyprus, thus putting them in the placement rounds, where they eventually finished 7th in the overall competition.
In 2018 they were confirmed as participating in the 2018 ConIFA World Football Cup. For the tournament, they appointed former North Korean international An Yong-hak as player-manager.
Matches
| 30 May 2016 Group B | United Koreans in Japan | 1–0 | Székely Land | Dinamo Stadium, Sukhumi |
| 15:00 GET | Lee Son-Chon  60' |
| 31 May 2016 Group B | United Koreans of Japan | 0–3 | Kurdistan Region | Dinamo Stadium, Sukhumi |
| 15:00 GET | Report | Diyar Rahman 27' Miran Khesro 45' (pen)Hunar Ahmad 73' |
| 1 June 2016 Quarter-Final | United Koreans in Japan | 1–1 (2–4 p) |  Northern Cyprus | Dinamo Stadium, Sukhumi |
| 15:00 GET | On Song-Tae 54' |
Ünal Kaya 31' |
||
| Penalties | ||||
Kim Kwang-Woo  On Song-Tae  Kim Su-Yong An Suug-Tae |
Esin Sonay Halil Turan Ünal Kaya Ibrahim Çıdamlı |
|||
| 3 June 2016 Placement R1 | United Koreans in Japan | 1–2 |  Sápmi | Dinamo Stadium, Sukhumi |
| 15:00 GET | Kim Su-Yong 2' |
9' (pen) 61' |
| 4 June 2016 Placement R2 | United Koreans in Japan | 1–1 (4–2 p) | Kurdistan Region | Daur Akhvlediani Stadium, Gagra |
| 11:00 GET | An Suug-Tae 90+5' |
80' |
||
| Penalties | ||||
| Kim Su-Yong An Suug-Tae Kim Kwang-Woo Huo Yang Shin Yong-Ki |
|
|||
| 26 November 2016 International Friendly | Ryūkyū | 0–9 | United Koreans in Japan | Gosamaru Field, Nakagusuku, Japan |
| 12:00 JST | (3) Anne-Sung Tae (2) Yuuki Gomi Lee Seong-Cheol Kang Awe Akimoto Kaijin Lee Yoshiaki |
| 31 May 2018 Group D | United Koreans in Japan | 0–0 |  Western Armenia | Colston Avenue, Carshalton |
| 12:00 BST | Referee: Fehim Dayı |
| 2 June 2018 Group D | United Koreans in Japan | 0–0 |  Kabylie | Larges Lane, Bracknell |
| 14:00 BST | Referee: Leon Dastych |
| 3 June 2018 Group D | Panjab  | 1–1 | United Koreans in Japan | Arbour Park, Slough |
| 18:00 BST | Purewal 77' (pen) |
Mun 90+4' |
Referee: David Murphy |
| 5 June 2018 Placement Round 1 | United Koreans in Japan | 5–0 |  Tuvalu | Larges Lane, Bracknell |
| 18:00 BST | Taniyama 18' Lee 20', 58'Shin 23'Mun 83' |
| 7 June 2018 Placement Round 2 | Abkhazia  | 2–0 | United Koreans in Japan | Hayes Lane, Bromley |
| 12:00 BST |
| 9 June 2018 Placement Round 3 | Tibet  | 1–1 (1–4 p) | United Koreans in Japan | St Paul's Sports Ground, Rotherhithe |
| BST |
Current squad
The following players were called up to the squad to face Panjab, Western Armenia and Kabylie at the 2018 ConIFA World Football Cup in London from 31 May to 10 June.[2]
Caps and goals correct as of 1 May 2018, when the squad was announced.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Lim Hyo-geum | 3 May 1996 | 0 | 0 |  Kwansei Gakuin University
|
| 25 | GK | Shim Woo-dae | 24 January 1985 | 0 | 0 | Unattached |
| 2 | DF | Shin Yong-ki | 14 April 1993 | 11 | 0 | FC Korea
|
| 13 | DF | Kim Sun-ji | 5 December 1994 | 5 | 0 | FC Korea
|
| 5 | DF | Hong Yun-guk | 11 February 1995 | 0 | 0 | FC Tokushima
|
| 6 | DF | Son Min-chol | 27 October 1986 | 0 | 0 |  Lee Man FC
|
| 17 | DF | An Yong-hak | 25 October 1978 | 0 | 0 | Unattached |
| 20 | DF | Kang Yoo-jun | 8 May 1998 | 0 | 0 |  Monroe Mustangs
|
| 28 | MF | Ken Tamiyama | 29 December 1995 | 10 | 0 | FC Tokushima
|
| 4 | MF | Ko Ji-hwang | 2 March 1995 | 0 | 0 | FC Tokushima
|
| 7 | MF | Lee Tong-jun | 25 June 1993 | 0 | 0 | Arawore Hachikita
|
| 8 | MF | Choi Gwang-yeon | 23 December 1987 | 0 | 0 | FC Korea
|
| 10 | MF | Yun Song-i | 29 January 1980 | 0 | 0 | Unattached |
| 14 | MF | Byun Yeong-jang | 1 November 1988 | 0 | 0 | Tokyo United
|
| 18 | MF | Lee Tong-soung | 1 March 1999 | 0 | 0 |  Staines Town
|
| 21 | MF | Hong Te-il | 24 May 1988 | 0 | 0 | Unattached |
| 26 | MF | Mun Su-hyeon | 6 August 1995 | 0 | 0 | FC Korea
|
| 11 | FW | Shin Yong-ju | 1 January 1996 | 0 | 0 | FC Korea
|
References
- ^ UKJ Profile ConIFA
- ^ United Koreans in Japan squad ConIFA