Above the clip, Bergstrom wrote, "No fighting in front of the kids! Oh, but there are none here today. Emotions run high at times as #DPRK meets #ROK in #FIFA game -- but audience is sparse."

There were four yellow cards issued in this match, two per side.

Bergstrom also posted a video clip of the pre-game ceremony, when the South Korean anthem was played with the national flag on display.

The office of President Moon Jae-in, who has striven to maintain the momentum of the Korea peace process, also voiced disappointment about the North's refusal to allow fans in the stands and broadcast the game live.

"We find it very regrettable as well," a Cheong Wa Dae official told reporters on the customary condition of anonymity.

South Korean people had expectations of a breakthrough from the sport event, as the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics opened the way for a full-fledged peace initiative, she pointed out.

"We did our best (this time)," and it's regrettable that there was no PyeongChang-like accomplishment, she added.

It wasn't immediately clear why North Korea kept the public out of the match, which was expected to draw up to 40,000 partisan North Korean fans. South Korean players had braced themselves for a hostile environment, after Pyongyang declined to authorize trips by South Korean fans. No journalists and broadcasting crew from the South made the trip, either.

The South Korean team traveled to Pyongyang via Beijing and will also make a stopover in the Chinese capital on its way home. (Yonhap)