Taeguk Ladies plan friendlies to prepare for World Cup

Korea will play against Iceland and Sweden to prepare for the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the national football governing body said Thursday.

The Korea Football Association (KFA) said the women’s football team will play two friendly matches with Iceland at home in April and will take on Sweden on the road in May before entering the Women’s World Cup, where Korea is in Group A with Norway, Nigeria and France.

The Taeguk Ladies, 14th in the latest FIFA rankings, will first welcome No. 22 Iceland in Yongin, Gyeonggi, on April 6 and face them again on April 9.

The venue for the second friendly has yet to be confirmed.

It will be the first meeting between Korea and Iceland in women’s football. The KFA said although Iceland didn’t qualify for the Women’s World Cup, they will be good sparring partners for Korea.

After the April friendlies, the KFA said the women’s squad will have two weeks of training at the National Football Center in Paju, Gyeonggi, from May 7.

After confirming the final 23-player roster for the Women’s World Cup, Korea will depart for Varberg, Sweden, on May 22.

Korea will then go head-to-head against world No. 9 Sweden at Gamla Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden, on May 31. Sweden is in the same group with the United States, Chile and Thailand in this year’s Women’s World Cup.

Korea has one draw and one loss against Sweden. Their last meeting at Algarve Cup in March 2018 ended in a 1-1 draw.

Korea, led by head coach Yoon Duk-yeo, is looking for their second-straight knockout stage appearance at the Women’s World Cup.

At the 2019 Women’s World Cup, there are 24 participants and they are divided into six groups of four.

Yonhap