Spain edge North Korea to win U20 Women's World Cup title

North Korea entered the final as the clear favourite, defending their previous World Cup crown after dominant group-stage wins over Portugal (2:0), Costa Rica (4:0) and Colombia (3:0). In the round of 16 they avenged an earlier defeat by beating Japan 2:0, the same team that had knocked them out of the Asian U20 championship final earlier this year. North Korea then eliminated Canada 2:0 in the quarterfinal and beat Colombia 3:0 again in the semifinal.

Spain arrived as reigning European U19 champions, topping their group with wins over Nigeria (2:0), New Caledonia (11:0) and China (3:1), before beating Portugal (2:0) in the round of 16, Brazil (1:0) in the quarterfinal and Italy (2:0) in the semifinal.

The final

The gold-medal match finished goalless after regulation and extra time, though Spain created roughly twice as many shooting opportunities. Spain's Paula Comendador finished the tournament as top scorer with six goals, while Argentina's Annika Pasa and North Korea's Jona Cho each scored five; Cho missed the opening penalty in the shootout. Spain went on to win the title, meaning North Korea remains on three World Cup titles, level with Germany, while Spain now has two.

Colombia, beaten by North Korea in the semifinal, claimed an unexpected bronze medal, coming from behind against Italy to win 4:3 on penalties after a 1:1 draw.