Chinese football boasts: "We will beat Japan and North Korea to win the title"... Even after losing to Korea, "confidence is at its peak. It's different because it's our home ground."

*This content was translated by AI.

The Chinese women's football team aims for the title, leveraging the "home advantage."

On the 23rd (Korea time), China's "Sohu.com" expressed strong confidence in China's victory at the 2026 AFC U-17 Women's Asian Cup.

The tournament, which kicks off on May 1 in China, also serves as the qualification round for the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup in Morocco. The four teams that reach the semifinals will secure a spot in the World Cup finals. A total of 12 teams will be divided into three groups for the group stage, with the top two teams from each group and the two best third-placed teams advancing to the quarterfinals.

China suffered a thorough humiliation in the previous tournament. They lost to Japan in the group stage and were defeated 0-1 by North Korea in the knockout rounds. They also lost 1-2 to Korea in the third-place playoff, finishing in fourth place. However, due to the expansion of World Cup qualification spots, they unexpectedly qualified for the 2025 U-17 World Cup finals.

However, local media ahead of the home tournament are brimming with confidence. Sohu.com stated, "Although we finished fourth in the last tournament, we have a chance to win this time. Our primary goal is to reach the semifinals and secure a World Cup ticket. If we achieve that, we can also aim for the title by fully utilizing our home advantage."

They have not forgotten the "lucky draw" based on the tournament bracket. China is grouped in Group A with Thailand, Vietnam, and Myanmar. Compared to Group A, which includes powerhouses Japan and Australia, and Group C, which includes Korea and North Korea, China's group assignment is relatively easy.

The media asserted, "If we finish first in our group and advance to the quarterfinals, we will face the third-placed team from either Group B or Group C. Since these are relatively weaker teams, reaching the semifinals is not difficult at all."

They also did not hesitate to provoke North Korea and Japan, the two pillars of Asian women's football. Sohu.com acknowledged the reality, stating, "The strongest teams in this age group are undoubtedly North Korea and Japan. However, if we want to win the title, we must defeat these powerhouses. This is a golden opportunity to prove our team's true strength ahead of the World Cup," showing their determination.

Meanwhile, Korea has won the U-17 Women's Asian Cup once, in 2009. In the previous tournament held in Indonesia in 2024, they finished in third place.

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*This content was translated by AI.