In 1966, North Korea won the first round after competing against the Soviet Union, Chile, and Italy.
In the third and decisive group match, North Korea beat title contenders Italy 1–0, eliminating them from the competition and advancing to the second stage.
The draw placed North Korea in Group G. They played their first match against five-time winners Brazil on 15 June.
Having lost all three group matches, they were knocked out, finishing at the bottom of Group G. It was reported that the apparent North Korean football fans were actually Chinese people who bought tickets reserved for North Korean government officials.
North Korea subsequently denied the report and claimed that the Chinese were small in number and that the government had permitted their travel.