Cedar Bough Photography

I think if you asked me to name some of the highlights of my life World Cup 2002 would be near the top of the list. In 2002 I was living in Daegu, Korea. Korea was co-hosting the finals of the World Cup soccer tournament. I was placed perfectly to experience the most amazing feeling of group unity and united happiness of my life.

Cedar Bough dressed as a Red Devil.
Photo by Sung-goen Yeo

Background for those of you who don’t follow soccer, Korea is a soccer country, but has been relegated to being the “best Asian team”, which always meant “not very good”. Korea has been at the World Cup every time for the last 5 tournaments. Their best result has been to tie a game. They’ve never won a single game, and they certainly have never advanced. Last time around, in 1998 Japan made it for the first time, as well. This part of Asia has only one birth in the World Cup, but there is a half spot available which we contest with the rest of Asia and Oceania. That basically means Asia competes with Australia and New Zealand. Or Japan did. Korea qualified top of Asia, as usual. But then at the France World Cup it was disappointment as usual. I particularly remember how handsome the Mexican players looked as they whipped Korea into the ground. And how my house almost shook when a boarding school half a mile away roared when Korea actually made a goal.

Korea has a domestic soccer league, the K-League. It’s the oldest Asian professional league. (Japan has the J-League). There are some foreign players, just like there are foreign baseball players and basketball

players. Most Korean players play domestically, though a few have played in the J-League and even fewer have made it to Europe (where they almost invariably have spent most of their time warming benches). The development of Korean soccer is hampered by many things, not the least of which is parents who are highly unsupportive of their children following careers in sports. Unless the kid has a rock on his shoulders, they are going to push him to find the best white-collar job he can 99.9% of the time. In addition, there are almost no grass playing fields, soccer is played on packed dirt (which causes different ball movement). Middle school and high school soccer teams almost don’t exist, and again, any kid who is smart is going to have his parents slam the door of trying out for the team, anyway. Last of all, when boys get old enough to choose their own path, and hit college age they have to fulfill their mandatory military service, and those 26+/- months do not help anyone become a top sports player. As I remarked to my boyfriend, the only player on the team whose parents might have supported his love of soccer is Cha Doori (whose father was on the team that went to Mexico City in 1986, and coached the 1998 attempt).

Two hours to game time, the streets of Daegu were packed with people who would rather cheer together than at home.



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