Korea's residents of foreign nationality react to World Cup

Football fans cheer at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Group H match between South Korea and Uruguay at the Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Nov. 24. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

By Ellie Goodwin

Followers of the Qatar World Cup have been treated to some dramatic and suspense-filled games these past few weeks. However, like all global sporting events, the possibility of good-natured rivalry coexists with that of hostility and potential xenophobia.

The experiences of many foreign nationals in Korea show it to be a safe and inclusive surrogate country for those supporting their home teams while living abroad.

Based on their experiences, British citizens George and Jennifer think that Korea has been far more foreigner-friendly than their own country.

"If there's a big league game (in England), or a Euros game or the World Cup, then it's often followed up with news about how badly behaved the fans have been," George said in an interview with The Korea Times. "I have friends in England who aren't English, and most of them have been on the receiving end of some verbal abuse. I feel lucky here."

Jennifer expressed a similar sentiment. "There seems to be less of the whole football hooligan culture in Korea ― I've not noticed any racial discrimination towards athletes and fans alike," she remarked.

Talking with The Korea Times, French citizen Nicolas Larsonneur compared his experiences watching sporting events in other European countries to those he's had in Korea. "I was in Spain during the Euros so I ended up watching it there. Whenever I wore my kit, I would get shouted at or booed ― so I stopped wearing it and just watched the game in my hotel room instead of the pub," he said. "I know that my experience might not be the same as other people's, but it's still one that stuck with me and not for good reasons."

"The team makes a difference too," said Puerto Rican-born Pedro Sanchez. "When you have players like that in a team, I think it makes the fans follow suit ― they have a lot of admiration for Son Heung-min after all. If a team was full of rude players then maybe fans would mimic that behavior."

Son Heung-min's commendable sportsmanship is refreshing in a sport where many equally high-profile players are known to behave disrespectfully to both opponents and referees. His humble, courteous manner and never-faltering smile set Son Heung-min apart, gaining recognition from fans all over the world as well as teammates. A player with this type of character is a positive ambassador to both team and the sport itself.

Tiago Manatos, a Portuguese national, recollected his experience watching the Korea-Portugal game in Gwanghwamun. "The buildup to the game was awesome. Me and my friends watched it and we were wearing our team kit. We didn't get any problems ― just friendly rival talk," he said. "When we lost, I had loads of Koreans patting me on the back and saying that my team played well."

Respect is often overlooked in sport, with the focus leaning towards long-lasting rivalries.
"I heard jokes about people not buying Ghana brand chocolate after the loss but it was all lighthearted. I'm from the Netherlands and whenever we play Germany, things get nasty pretty quickly," Willem Ruisch said. "I know there's the Japan and South Korea rivalry but I've never seen the aggressive side to it."

Sharing this opinion, British citizen Jennifer added, "Whenever there's an England football match, I feel like there'll always be a silly taunt of reference to World War II ― it sours the experience."

Sports give people the chance to dismantle cultural differences and old political tensions by finding common ground and connecting over shared mutual enjoyment. This can be seen in everyday interactions and not just on a socio-political platform. Language barriers, which are ordinarily a frustrating obstacle for both parties, can be grounds for amusement when the conversation is centered on a shared interest where meanings can be understood through lots of wild gesticulating.

"I've met a bunch of people during the World Cup ― Koreans and foreigners. Most of the time we can't have a proper conversation because of language problems, but we can still get our points across ― we're all talking about the same thing after all," Peruvian American Mauricho Chavez said. "It's been a great way to meet new people from different countries. I'm pretty introverted but the shared interest gets the conversation off to an easy start."

The controversy surrounding the host country is well-documented. Systemic labor abuses which have resulted in the deaths of thousands of migrant workers employed in World Cup infrastructure projects have received global attention. This exploitive treatment, alongside Qatar's open condemning and persecution of the LGBTQ community, as well as the oppression of women, have provoked responses from teams, players and viewers alike. Solidarity and support, regardless of the team, has been openly established across communities, with Korea proving itself to be a safe space in this respect.

"I've met other women from different countries and we've had many conversations about the lack of women's rights in Qatar ― it's been a healthy release to freely talk about it," Chinese American Mia Tsou said. "There's no fear of backlash which is more than can be said for women in countries like Qatar or Iran ― we've actually made a Kakao chat to stay connected."

A Moroccan national who wished to be identified by the surname of Yrouda said her World Cup experience in Korea has helped with the connecting of marginalized individuals, beyond just cementing mutual respect between different nationalities. "I'm a gay woman and private about it because of the discrimination here, so I was surprised when I met a gay man during one of the matches. We've swapped numbers and chat when things get a bit difficult for us ― and it started with a shared interest in football."

Korea is becoming increasingly multicultural and diverse. Correspondingly, its tolerance and acknowledgement of a wide spectrum of backgrounds ― be it one's sexuality, religion or disability ― needs to improve, with gradual progress being apparent in some aspects.

Prejudice and discrimination exist across the world; Korea is no exception. However, global sporting events which can be remembered by the community of foreign national residents in a positive light show both the progress made and promise in moving forward.

Ellie Goodwin is a teacher from the U.K. in Gwangju. She also writes for Gwangju News.