World Cup notebook

South Korean supporters at Daegu Stadium created a special atmosphere enjoyed by all there.

DAEGU, South Korea (Tuesday, June 11, 2002) -- The crowd at Daegu World Cup Stadium that witnessed last night’s 1-1 draw between the United States and South Korea last night was fantastic.

Of the 60,778 in attendance, probably 57,000 were dressed in red and cheering their lungs out, often in unison, for their beloved home team, the "Reds." It was as enthusiastic and loud a crowd as one could ever imagine, fervently supporting the home side as vociferously as humanly possible. Never, for a moment, however, was there the least threat to anyone’s safety.

Players, United States Soccer Federation staff and reporters discussing this after the game agreed that Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium with 117,000 blowing air horns is much louder, and crowds in El Salvador, Costa Rica and Guatemala are vastly more threatening to players, visiting fans and foreign reporters.

The players’ reactions to last night’s crowd and the stadium were typical of American defender Tony Sanneh who has played all over the world in the German Bundesliga, European Champions League and U.S. national team matches.

"It was a great atmosphere," he said. "It was loud, but not deafening on the field. Players could hear one another with no problem. But a crowd like that energizes players on both sides. This is what you play soccer for."

The players were helped by the fact that the nearest seat was more than 45 yards from all four sidelines. Almost all the stadiums built for the World Cup by South Korea and Japan have left considerable separations between the fields and the stands, but Daegu’s was even more pronounced because the stadium is going to be converted for track and field for the upcoming Asian Games.

Korean officials had been concerned before the match that radical student leftist groups would hold potentially violent anti-American protests outside the stadium. Thousands of police and troops were assembled, just in case, but no problems materialized from a crowd that was clearly in the mood to celebratee.

After the match, U.S. fans easily mingled with the Koreans at a rock concert held outside the stadium. The entire scene was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The Korean media simply could not believe what had happened and was left to write one of the most stories in memory with no comments from the nation’s heroes. A few reporters were near tears.

One official from world governing body FIFA said he had never witnessed such a scene before "and this is my eighth World Cup."

Normally, players exit the lockerroom through an area known as the mixed zone where reporters and television crews, on the other side of barriers, in this case waist-high wooden ones, summon those participants they wish to talk to. Some players can be surrounded by throngs while others might have one-on-one interviews, depending on their contributions in the game. Most players are accommodating; those who do not want to talk have the ability to sneak away.

The barriers usually snake around, forming a path that leads the players to their team bus.

Apparently the South Korean players were deeply embarrassed they had not won, but their collective decision not to talk to the media reflected a level of immaturity and inexperience in dealing with playing matches of this importance.

Contrast this with the conduct of the Portuguese players after their loss to the U.S. Every player who was asked stopped and conversed with the Portuguese media while several who were fluent in English, including injured Liverpool defender Abel Xavier and ailing star midfielder Luis Figo, patiently talked with American reporters.

While not worthy of an international incident, the decorum of international matches calls for players to exchange shirts with the opponent they have most closely played against, win, lose or draw. To refuse is to dishonor your opponent and in doing so, yourself.

As with yesterday’s game against the Americans, every television set in this country is expected to be tuned into the South Korean match, leading to the fear that Koreans who bought tickets to the U.S. match will instead choose to watch their national team.

There are 41,000-plus seats in the Daejeon stadium and organizers fear that fewer than 10,000 will be occupied, even though the match is a sellout. Various solutions have been discussed, including showing the South Korean match on the big in-stadium screen. That, however, would be unfair to the two teams playing since the entire crowd would react and cheer to a different match than the one being played in front of it.

Organizers will probably publicize that they will show first-half highlights of the South Korean game at halftime of the U.S. match and show the entire second half of the Koreans game against Portugal when the Poland-U.S. match concludes. This might not be enough to prevent a worldwide television audience from seeing a majority of the seats at Daejon unoccupied.

Senior correspondent Robert Wagman can be e-mailed at bobwagman@soccertimes.com.