Divided Koreas draw 1-1 in World Cup qualifier

SHANGHAI, Sept. 10 (Yonhap) -- South and North Korea played to a one-all draw Wednesday in the final Asian qualifying round for the 2010 World Cup, tying for the third time this year in their regional qualifier.

Veteran North Korean midfielder Hong Yong-jo scored a penalty in the 59th minute
to give his team a 1-0 lead, but 19-year-old South Korean Ki Sung-yueng rifled a
volley shot just four minutes later to equalize.

The draw helped North Korea consolidate its early lead in Group 2 of the
qualifying round with four points, having defeated the United Arab Emirates last
week. South Korea only has one point after its opener on Wednesday.

The match in the Chinese city of Shanghai came after North Korea refused to allow
South Korea to raise its national flag and play its anthem in Pyongyang, the
original venue. The two Koreas have remained in a technical state of war since
the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce rather than a peace treaty.

The move prompted FIFA to relocate the match to Shanghai, the second time the
world football governing body has made such a compromise. The two Koreas played
to two scoreless draws earlier this year during the previous qualifying round.

Ten Asian teams are competing in the final round-robin tournament that kicked off
last week, with the two top teams from each group of five allowed to advance to
the World Cup in South Africa.

The third-placed teams from each group will play against each other, with the
winner later facing off against the top squad from Oceania.

South Korea will also face Iran, Saudi Arabia and the UAE in the final qualifying
round. The team will play the UAE at home on Sept. 15.

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