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FRI · 2026-09-18 · 10:59 GMTBRIEF NSR-2026-0918-112247
News/North Korean anthem played for South Kor/North Korea anthem played at South’s Bangladesh hockey match…
NSR-2026-0918-112247News Report·EN·Diplomatic

North Korea anthem played at South’s Bangladesh hockey match at Asian Games

During the Asian Games in Gifu, Japan, organizers mistakenly played North Korea's national anthem instead of South Korea's before a men's hockey match between South Korea and Bangladesh. The South Korean players appeared confused as the anthem, which is banned in South Korea, was played.

By ReutersAl JazeeraFiled 2026-09-18 · 10:59 GMTLean · CenterRead · 2 min
North Korea anthem played at South’s Bangladesh hockey match at Asian Games
Al JazeeraFIG 01
Reading time
2min
Word count
251words
Sources cited
1cited
Entities identified
11entities
Quality score
100%
§ 01

Briefing Summary

AI-generated
NEWSAR · AI

During the Asian Games in Gifu, Japan, organizers mistakenly played North Korea's national anthem instead of South Korea's before a men's hockey match between South Korea and Bangladesh. The South Korean players appeared confused as the anthem, which is banned in South Korea, was played. The stadium announcer quickly apologized for the error, stating they had played the wrong song. South Korea ultimately won the match 5-0. This incident adds to a series of organizational issues reported at the games, including complaints from basketball players about room size and transport problems affecting the men's football team. The Asian Games organizing committee has not yet commented on the anthem mix-up.

Confidence 0.90Sources 1Claims 5Entities 11
§ 02

Article analysis

Model · rule-based
Framing
Diplomatic
Human Interest
Tone
Measured
AI-assessed
CalmNeutralAlarmist
Factuality
0.90 / 1.00
Factual
LowHigh
Sources cited
1
Limited
FewMany
§ 03

Key claims

5 extracted
01

The North Korean national anthem is banned in South Korea.

factual
Confidence
1.00
02

South Korea won the hockey match against Bangladesh 5-0.

factual
Confidence
1.00
03

The stadium announcer apologized for the mistake, stating 'National anthem for the Republic of Korea, we played a different song'.

quotestadium announcer
Confidence
1.00
04

South Korean players were left bemused by the anthem mix-up.

factual
Confidence
1.00
05

North Korea's anthem was accidentally played instead of South Korea's at an Asian Games hockey match.

factual
Confidence
1.00
§ 04

Full report

2 min read · 251 words
Asian Games organisers in Japan accidently play North Korea’s anthem ahead of South’s during hockey match with Bangladesh.The South Korean men’s hockey ⁠team were ⁠left bemused before their Asian Games match against Bangladesh on Friday when North ⁠Korea’s national anthem was played instead of their own.Lined up before the match, the ⁠South Korean players looked around in confusion as the anthem rang out at Green Stadium in Gifu, Japan.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Bayern and England’s Kane not focused on Ballon d’Or despite 73-goal seasonlist 2 of 4India star Sooryavanshi urged to be patient by coach Gambhirlist 3 of 4English FA calls for Infantino to release FIFA World Cup sell-off documentslist 4 of 4Beckham backs Messi for Ballon d’Or after netting 100th Inter Miami goalend of listThe stadium announcer was quick to ‌apologise for the mistake.“We are really sorry, terribly sorry. National anthem for the Republic of Korea, we played a different song,” he said.“I’m really sorry.”South Korea won the match 5-0.The North Korean national anthem is ⁠banned in South Korea, ⁠along with other symbols of their wartime foes.The 1950-1953 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace ⁠treaty, meaning the North and South are still technically at ⁠war.The Asian Games organising committee ⁠did not immediately comment on the anthem mix-up.South Korea has complained of a number of organisational problems at ‌the games, with basketball players unhappy with the size of their rooms and transport ‌issues ‌disrupting preparations for the men’s football team, the defending champions.
§ 05

Entities

11 identified
§ 06

Keywords & salience

9 terms
north korea anthem
1.00
south korea
1.00
asian games
1.00
hockey match
0.80
anthem mix-up
0.80
organisational problems
0.60
korean war
0.50
bangladesh
0.40
japan
0.40
§ 07

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