In a surprise twist on May 27, the AFC invalidated North Korea's first five results in the WC qualifying tournament, which allowed South Korea to leapfrog into the lead of Group H.
According to the established rules of the Asian zone of the World Qualifying Tournament, the top of the eight groups and the second of the four best-performing groups will advance directly to the tournament. In light of North Korea's disqualification, once the final standings of the other groups are determined, an additional match between the 2nd and 5th place finishers will be played to maintain the integrity of the tournament.
And the final promotion list will be determined in accordance with the following criteria:
1. Top of the group standings;
2. Leads the group in total goal difference;
3. The highest total number of goals scored by the group;
4. Fair play points (taking into account red and yellow cards);
