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The Japanese Football Association has reportedly asked FIFA to intervene after complaining their players were punched by North Korean rivals ahead of their match at the FIFA Under-17 World Cup.
On Tuesday, Japan and North Korea met in the last-16 of the tournament, which is taking place in Qatar.
Footage showed the two teams lining up before kick-off, preparing to conduct the pre-match handshake routine between rival players and officials.
Players could be seen fist bumping and high fiving at the start of the routine, which escalated as the Japanese side walked further down the line.
A couple of North Korean players appeared to swing their arms back and aim forceful punches at their rivals.
North Korean players were not sanctioned by the match officials over the incident.
The Japanese Football Association have asked FIFA to intervene after some of their players appeared to be punched ahead of their Under-17 World Cup last-16 tie
Footage showed North Korean players swinging their arms back and punching Japanese players, when the sides were exchanging handshakes and fist bumps before their match
The Japanese Football Association has now reportedly contacted FIFA over the incident and sent footage of the incident to the governing body.
'We would like to ask FIFA for a decision,' a spokesperson told the Japanese outlet Chunichi.
Japan would ultimately emerge as the winners of the last-16 tie at the Aspire Zone in Qatar.
Jelani McGhee opened the scoring for Japan in the sixth minute of the match, only for Ri Hyok Gwang to draw North Korea level in the second half.
Penalties were ultimately required to separate the two sides, with Japan winning 5-4 to book their place in the quarter-finals.
Japan's tournament, however, came to an end on Friday after they suffered a narrow 1-0 defeat by Austria.
Japan and North Korea have long had fraught relations, with the former having admitting to abducting Japanese citizens in the late 1970s and 1980s.
While some were later returned, Japan has pressed for the released of all the people who were abducted, while North Korea has claimed the matter is resolves.
Tensions have increased further amid North Korean missile tests, which have travelled through Japanese airspace.
