Michael Batson

In 1965 Cambodians witnessed one of the more unusual footballing events; World Cup playoffs on home soil not involving their own country. The two matches between Australia and North Korea were played in Cambodia as neither country had diplomatic relations with each other and Cambodia was the only country with diplomatic relations with both willing to host the event. The games were played over “home and away” in the newly completed Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh, opened just the year before. The matches were watched by an estimated 115,000 spectators half of whom, on strict instructions from Cambodia's mercurial head of state Prince Sihanouk, cheered for each of the two teams. This was the first ever World Cup qualifying campaign for both countries. Since then Australia has qualified for the finals five times, and North Korea twice. The matches marked Australia’s first foray into mainstream international football forging links with Asia that culminated in Football Federation Australia’s embrace of the Asia Confederation in 2006. North Korea emerged onto the world sporting stage from shattering war and famine, and went on to make history in England in 1966 being the first Asian country competing in the World Cup finals to defeat a ranked nation, Italy, before being knocked out of the competition by a Eusebio-inspired Portugal. Their exploits on the global sporting stage were later made into a film ‘The Game of Their Lives’ in 2002 by British documentary film director