2002 FIFA World Cup

A large part of the Korea Team's victories during the 2002 FIFA WorldCup™ undoubtedly belongs to the Red Devil Supporters. The Red Devils are a non-profit organization made up of Koreans who simply love soccer. The group evolved from an online club in 1997, before the preliminaries for the 1998 France WorldCup, in order to provide a well-organized support group for the national team. The name "Red Devils" comes from the 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship, held in Mexico. During those games, Korea's team unexpectedly made the top 4, creating media frenzy that dubbed the Koreans as the "Red Furies." The support group adopted the name as the "Red Devils". The moniker carries the hope that Korea will once stand proud as one of the world's best in the sport.

The Red Devils numbered around 80,000 before the opening games of the 2002 WorldCup, but a mere two weeks later, right after the WorldCup began, their numbers are upwards of 200,000. Most of their members sign up through www.reddevils.or.kr (Korean language), the group's official homepage. They rarely visit the office in person.

The Red Devils are earning a name for themselves not only through great organization and amazing cheering. They show that they are model citizens by keeping strict order at the stadiums and streets. It is impressive to see the Red Devils picking up trash after a game in an orderly fashion, as if it was agreed upon beforehand.

The displays of street cheering led by the Red Devils was also an oft-discussed phenomenon. Citizens voluntarily donned red t-shirts and gathered at big-screen LEDs around the nation. And as one, they became the Red Devils and cheered for their team. The Red Devil's website provided detailed information about these proceedings. 800,000 flooded the streets for the game vs. Poland, 1,500,000 for the game vs. the USA, and 2,800,000 for the game vs. Portugal. And at the game vs. Italy, which decided Korea's entry into the quarterfinals, an astonishing 4,200,000 people were on the streets sending their passion towards the WorldCup stadium in Daejeon.

The Red Devil syndrome took over Korea. The worldwide media was taken by surprise at the fervor with which the Korean public cheers. It was not uncommon to see visitors from outside the country here to support their teams joining in on the festivities. It was truly a miracle.


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Overview
Game Location	South Korea : Seoul, Incheon, Suwon, Daejeon, Jeonju, Gwangju, Daegu,Ulsan, Busan, Seogwipo Japan : Sapporo, Miyagi, Niigata, Ibarake, Saitama, Yokohama, Shizuoka, Osaka, Kobe, Oita
Spectators	Stadium spectators reached 1.6 million, including 800,000 from countries outside Korea and Japan.
Ideology of 2002 FIFA World Cup™	New Millenium, New Encounter, New Start
Goal	- To promote soccer - To develop friendship - To contribute to the peace
Number of participants	- About 13,000 (32 teams, FIFA representatives, Press corps, etc.) - FIFA Family : 1,730 (FIFA representatives, Teams, Referees, Staff from each country) - 11,270 (Delegation of General Assembly, Press corps, Sponsors, Invited celebrities, etc.)

Red Devil			Go to Top
About Red Devil	A large part of the Korea Team's victories during the 2002 FIFA WorldCup™ undoubtedly belongs to the Red Devil Supporters. The Red Devils are a non-profit organization made up of Koreans who simply love soccer. The group evolved from an online club in 1997, before the preliminaries for the 1998 France WorldCup, in order to provide a well-organized support group for the national team. The name "Red Devils" comes from the 1983 FIFA World Youth Championship, held in Mexico. During those games, Korea's team unexpectedly made the top 4, creating media frenzy that dubbed the Koreans as the "Red Furies." The support group adopted the name as the "Red Devils". The moniker carries the hope that Korea will once stand proud as one of the world's best in the sport. The Red Devils numbered around 80,000 before the opening games of the 2002 WorldCup, but a mere two weeks later, right after the WorldCup began, their numbers are upwards of 200,000. Most of their members sign up through www.reddevils.or.kr (Korean language), the group's official homepage. They rarely visit the office in person. The Red Devils are earning a name for themselves not only through great organization and amazing cheering. They show that they are model citizens by keeping strict order at the stadiums and streets. It is impressive to see the Red Devils picking up trash after a game in an orderly fashion, as if it was agreed upon beforehand. The displays of street cheering led by the Red Devils was also an oft-discussed phenomenon. Citizens voluntarily donned red t-shirts and gathered at big-screen LEDs around the nation. And as one, they became the Red Devils and cheered for their team. The Red Devil's website provided detailed information about these proceedings. 800,000 flooded the streets for the game vs. Poland, 1,500,000 for the game vs. the USA, and 2,800,000 for the game vs. Portugal. And at the game vs. Italy, which decided Korea's entry into the quarterfinals, an astonishing 4,200,000 people were on the streets sending their passion towards the WorldCup stadium in Daejeon. The Red Devil syndrome took over Korea. The worldwide media was taken by surprise at the fervor with which the Korean public cheers. It was not uncommon to see visitors from outside the country here to support their teams joining in on the festivities. It was truly a miracle.