An Olympic qualifying match between the Japanese and North Korean women’s soccer teams will not be held in Pyongyang this Saturday as originally scheduled, according to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), in what would have been the first international competition in the country since the start of the pandemic.

The contest will now be held in Saudi Arabia, Japan’s Kyodo News reported on Tuesday, following reports that the Japanese Football Association (JFA) complained to the AFC about the logistics of traveling to North Korea. 

An AFC official told NK Newsthat Japanese athletes will not travel to the DPRK for