Missing 'People's Ronaldo' North Korea's Guang Sheng returns to A-match for first time in three year

Participation in the second qualifying round of the ‘North and Central America World Cup’ The team lost to Syria

Han Kwang-seong during his time in Perugia, Italy

Han Kwang-song, a North Korean national soccer player who played at the top stages in Europe and earned the nickname "People's Ronaldo" but then suddenly disappeared, appeared in a soccer game for the first time in three years.

Radio Free Asia (RFA) reported on the 17th that Han Gwang-sung participated in the 2026 North and Central America World Cup Asian region second qualifying match between North Korea and Syria held at the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on the 16th.

Han Gwang-seong, who started this day wearing number 10, played the first half in the left attacker position and was replaced.Syria won the game 1-0.

This is his return to the field after three years, having disappeared after a league game in Qatar in August 2020.It has been four years since the second qualifying round for the World Cup Asia region in November 2019 that he participated in an A match (match between national teams).

Han Gwang-sung, who went to Spain to study soccer in accordance with Chairman Kim Jong-un's plan to become a 'powerhouse in sports,' stood out there and officially joined the youth club of Cagliari, a member of Seria A of the Italian first division, in 2017.

Afterwards, he was promoted to a professional level and scored his first goal a week after making his official debut, proving his talent as a striker.

Han Kwang-sung captured the attention of soccer fans by showing off his fast dribbling in the first soccer game between North and South Korea in 29 years held in Pyongyang in 2019.

His career reached its peak when he moved to Juventus, one of the prestigious teams in Seria A, in 2020 after being loaned to the Perugia club.

Afterwards, he was sold to Qatar's Al Duhail club, but it was assessed that his value was recognized in that a transfer fee of $4.6 million (about 6.1 billion won) was paid over the five years from the 2023 to 2024 season.

However, he disappeared after playing in the final game of the season against Al-Ahli in August 2020.At the time, it was reported that he was expelled after his contract with Al-Duhail was terminated due to the effects of UN Security Council sanctions against North Korea.

RFA reported that Han Kwang-sung remained in Italy and appears to have returned to North Korea via China last August. 카지노사이트존