SEOUL, Jan. 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korean pro football club Gangwon FC said Thursday they will play friendly matches with North Korean clubs in China next month.
Gangwon, which play in the top-tier K League Classic, said they will take on North Korea's April 25 football club on Friday and Yeomyung football team on Feb. 2. Both matches will be played in Kunming, China. Chinese pro club Beijing Guoan will also play friendly matches with them.
Football exchange between Gangwon and North Korean clubs was agreed last month when Gangwon Gov. Choi Moon-soon, also owner of Gangwon FC, met with Mun Ung, a vice minister-level official who heads North Korea's April 25 Athletic Committee, on the sidelines of the 2017 Ari Sports Cup youth football tournament in China.
"We'll have opportunities to have football exchanges with North Korea's April 25 sports clubs," Gangwon said. "Officials from the two Koreas will attend the matches and will discuss having sports exchanges on a regular basis."
The matches will be organized by the South-North Korea Inter-Korean Sports Association, a Seoul-based inter-Korean sports exchange promotion group, and will be sponsored by the Gangwon Provincial Government.
There will also be women's football matches. Gangwon State University will face North Korea's April 25 and China's Yunnan.
Gangwon players were scheduled to fly to Kunming, China, on Thursday after completing their preseason training in Thailand. After an 11-day stay in Kunming, they will move to Guangzhou for another preseason tune-up.
This file photo taken Oct. 22, 2017, shows Gangwon Gov. Choi Moon-soon (R) shaking hands with Gangwon FC players ahead of their K League Classic match against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in Chuncheon, Gangwon Province. (Yonhap)
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