North Korea has participated in five AFC Asian Cup tournaments, and finished in fourth place, their best performance to date, during their maiden appearance in 1980.
However, unlike their Southern neighbor, North Korea often struggles to have the best performances, due to poor quality of the national team and their squad, as well as outside sanctions on the nation for its repressive nature. North Korea, after their 1980 appearance, would have to wait for 12 years for their next qualification, and they made further tournament appearances in the 2011, 2015 and 2019 editions. North Korea has not won an Asian Cup match since 1980, a drought of nearly 40 years.
Squads
1980 Asian Cup
Group A Teamwidth=25width=25width=25width=25width=25width=254220124+86430197+26421132+15411295+434004217−150
Semi-finals
Third place play-off
1992 Asian Cup
Group A Team5312021+15312021+14311121+11301225−3
2011 Asian Cup
Group D
Team330061+59320132+16 301202−21 301204−41
11 January 20110–015 January 20111–019 January 20111–0
2015 Asian Cup
Group B
10 January 2015 1–0 Stadium Australia, Sydney14 January 2015 1–4 AAMI Park, Melbourne18 January 2015 2–1 Canberra Stadium, Canberra
2019 Asian Cup
Group E
Overall record AFC Asian Cup recordQualification recordYearResultPosition** 1956Not an AFC memberNot an AFC member 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976Withdrew after qualifying531174 1980Fourth place4th63031012541092 1984Did not enterDid not enter 1988Did not qualify421132 1992Group stage8th301225321080 1996Did not enterDid not enter 2000Did not qualify6321117 20048125315BannedBanned 2011Group stage12th301202Qualified as 2010 AFC Challenge Cup winners 2015Group stage14th300327Qualified as 2012 AFC Challenge Cup winners 2019Group stage24th3003114148332718 2023WithdrewWithdrew during qualifying 2027Qualified6303117TotalFourth place6/191832131540512611147655
See also North Korea at the FIFA World Cup
References