Chelsea Ji So-yun stunned the 33,000-strong crowd with the opening goal just after the half-hour mark, before Carli Lloyd equalised three minutes later but the Americans couldn’t find a winning goal in head coach Jill Ellis’ final game in charge.

Korea Republic’s draw ends a five-game losing streak and makes them the first side to share the spoils with the Americans since England claimed a 2-2 draw in March.

Mana Iwabuchi, Yuka Momiki, Yui Hasegawa and Rikako Kobayasahi all got on the scoresheet for Asako Takakura’s side, who ended a run of one win in their previous eight games in fine style.

Allie Long and Mallory Pugh scored either side of half-time for the Americans, who required two Megan Rapinoe set-pieces to unlock a Korean outfit appearing in their first international match since their elimination from June’s FIFA Women’s World Cup.

With Kim Hye-ri captaining the side, and key names such as Ji So-yun, Jang Sel-gi and Cho So-hyun all present, the Koreans arrived in Charlotte eager to improve on the 6-0 loss they suffered in their last meeting with the United States in 2017.

The Matildas goal machine and 2017 AFC Women’s Player of the Year found the back of the net twice in Chicago Red Stars’ 3-1 win over Washington Spirit, taking her season tally to 18; one more than the previous record she set in 2017.

Kerr’s 18 goals have come in just 20 appearances, and despite her missing a month of league football due to Australia’s participation in FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019, where she scored five goals in four matches.

Four Asian teams, including host Japan, will compete in the men’s football tournament, while Asako Takakura’s Asian champions will be one of three to take part in the women’s competition, making the battle to represent the Continent one with little margin for error.

Both competitions have already seen dramatic qualifying action in Asia. The Road to Tokyo’s women’s football tournament began in Asia on November 4, 2018, while the first men’s qualifiers got underway on March 22, 2019, with final tournaments to be staged in early 2020 to determine the Continent's representatives.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino had already said that he was determined to push ahead with plans to expand the FIFA Women's World Cup in time for the next tournament after hailing France 2019 as "the best ever".

"The astounding success of this year's World Cup made it very clear that this is the time to keep the momentum going and take concrete steps to foster the growth of women's football," said Infantino, who has succeeded in expanding the men's tournament from 32 teams to 48 in time for the 2026 finals in the USA, Mexico and Canada.

"I am glad to see this proposal - the first of several - becoming a reality."

With three out of five representatives reaching the knockout stage, it was a tournament of much promise, but three losses in four days to European opposition meant that, for the first time in history, the quarter-final draw is without an Asian side.

As the dust settles on the Continent’s campaign at France 2019, the-AFC.com reviews the campaigns of each of the five participants.