# 2013 Hwaebul Cup

The 2013 Hwaebul Cup was the inaugural edition of the Hwaebul Cup (홰불, Torch) football competition celebrating North Korea's Youth Day. The competition was held between 15 and 28 August 2013, with all matches played at the Kim Il-sung Stadium in P'yŏngyang. The competition was arranged in two phases, a group stage followed by a single-elimination play-off semi-finals, and a single-game final.

## Round and dates

| Round | Match date | Number of fixtures | Teams | New entries this round |
| Group stage | 15–24 August 2013 | 25 | 11 → 4 | 11 |
| Semi-finals | 26 August 2013 | 2 | 4 → 2 | none |
| Final | 28 August 2013 | 1 | 2 → 1 | none |

## Group stage

Eleven teams took part in the group stage, drawn into two groups, with five teams in Group A and six in Group B.

### Group A

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | April 25 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 4 | +3 | 9 | Advance to semi-finals |
| 2 | Hwaebul | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 5 | +4 | 8 | Advance to semi-finals |
| 3 | P'yŏngyang City | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 9 | −1 | 5 | |
| 4 | Myohyangsan | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 9 | −4 | 3 | |
| 5 | Man'gyŏngbong | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −2 | 2 | |

### Group B

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Sŏnbong | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 3 | +6 | 12 | Advance to semi-finals |
| 2 | Amrokkang | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 3 | +5 | 12 | Advance to semi-finals |
| 3 | Rimyŏngsu | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 8 | +3 | 10 | |
| 4 | Kyŏnggong'ŏp | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 7 | |
| 5 | Kigwanch'a | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 11 | −5 | 3 | |
| 6 | Wŏlmido | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 15 | −11 | 0 | |
* ↑ Unknown why Sŏnbong were ranked first.
Starting 11s:
* Kigwancha: 18 Kim Il-gwang (gk); 15 Pang Tae-gun, 25 Ryu Kum-chol, 3 Kang Kuk-chol, 6 U Il-gang, 5 Ri Tong-il, 7 Kim Yong-il, 17 Choe Kwang-hyok, 11 Kim Ji-song, 9 Jang Ok-chol, 19 Han Tae-hyok; manager: Ko Jong-nam
* Wolmido: 1 Pyo Kuk-chol (gk); 11 Im Yong-chol, 4 Kang Hyon-su, 17 Rim Hyok-ju, 22 Cha Sang-chol, 15 Un Yong-il, 18 Ro Myong-il, 14 Kim Kyong-hol, 8 Ri Kum-chol, 7 Hyon Jin-hyok, 16 Ri Kum-song; manager: Pak Jong-chol
Starting 11s:
* Sŏnbong: 1 Om Jin-ho (gk); 18 Ri Yong-ha, 3 Song Chol-un, 4 Rim Song, 14 Kim Song-hak, 7 Yun Hyok-chol , 6 Ri Un-chol, 17 Kang In-su, 8 Pae Myong-jin, 28 Paek Chol-jin, 15 Ho Myong-chol; manager: O Tae-song; 19 Choe Jin-hyok, 11 Jang Ok-il
* Rimyŏngsu: 1 Ri Chol-jin (gk); 3 Ri Myong-hak, 16 Kim Ju-hyok, 20 Ro Hak-su, 2 Jang Kwang-hyok, 9 Pak Song-chol, 12 Jo Jong-chol, 13 Yang Jun-hyok, 8 Ri Hyok, 11 Pak Chol-min, 7 Kim Kyong-il; manager: Kim Myong-song

## Semi-finals

The semi-final matches were both held on the same day, probably 26 August 2013. The result of the Sŏnbong–Hwaebul match is unknown; in the other match, April 25 defeated Amrokkang 3–1 on penalties after finishing level at 2–2 after extra time.

## Final

The final was held on 28 August 2013 at Kim Il-sung Stadium. The score was even at 2–2 after extra time, and Sŏnbong won 6–5 on penalties. However, a few days after the match, Sŏnbong was deemed to have fielded an ineligible player, and April 25 were awarded the victory. In addition to being stripped of the title, Sŏnbong were suspended from all competitions for six months.
| April 25 | Sŏnbong |
* 2013 Hwaebul Cup April 25 1st title