Sport|FootballJapan beat South Korea 4-1 to meet Australia in Women’s Asian Cup finalJapan will face Australia in the final of the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup after beating South Korea 2-1 in the semifinal.
## Sports Update: Women's Asian Cup Semifinals
Sports Update: Women's Asian Cup Semifinals
Japan secured a spot in the Women’s Asian Cup final with a 4-1 victory over South Korea on Wednesday, Oct 18, 2023. The match took place at Sydney’s Stadium Australia. Riko Ueki and Maika Hamano scored first-half goals for Japan, setting the team on course for the win.
Japan believed they had extended their lead to 3-0 before halftime when Aoba Fujino scored in the 43rd minute. However, the goal was disallowed following a VAR review. Japan, ranked seventh in the FIFA world rankings, increased their tournament goal tally to 27 when defender Saki Kumagai scored in the 75th minute. South Korea's Kang Chae-rim scored in the 78th minute, marking the first goal conceded by Japan in the tournament. Remina Chiba restored Japan's three-goal lead with a goal in the 81st minute.
The final will take place on Saturday, Oct 21, 2023, in Sydney. Japan has previously won the Asian Cup finals in 2014 and 2018, but did not reach the final in 2022. Australia, the other finalist, has reached the championship match four times since joining the Asian confederation, winning once in 2010.
Japan secured a spot in the Women’s Asian Cup final with a 4-1 victory over South Korea on Wednesday, Oct 18, 2023.
Japan is the only Asian team to have won the Women’s World Cup, having defeated the United States in 2011. Australia recently secured a 2-1 win over defending champion China in the first semifinal, with Sam Kerr scoring the decisive goal.
All four semifinalists have qualified automatically for the 2027 Women’s World Cup. Additional playoffs are scheduled for Thursday, Oct 19, 2023, with Taiwan facing North Korea and the Philippines competing against Uzbekistan for two more spots in Brazil.
Based on reporting by Al Jazeera.
