Football in Seoul, South Korea (FC Seoul)
It was time to take a break from baseball, and start to enjoy the football experience in Korea. My first stop was to see FC Seoul as they took on Ulsan Hyundai in the Seoul World Cup Stadium. Due to the turbulent nature of the K League, FC Seoul has only been based in the city for less than two decades, so it’s understandable that the entire city isn’t super passionate about the team. However, this is still a team that has a stunning stadium, its fair share of passionate ultras, and a competitive spirit that’s brought in some recent championships.
The Stadium
The Seoul World Cup Stadium is a magnificent complex. Most stadiums in Korea are pretty basic, and feature just enough to enjoy a sports game. This stadium does not play by this construct. From the pitch, its design is beautiful. The display on the top makes it stand out from many others, and it stands as a great representative of the country. This is like one of those stadiums that you pick to play in during a game of FIFA with your buddies, just because it looks cool. Getting to watch a real life game here is pretty surreal.
What caught me by surprise was just how much more there is too it than the design. Underneath the pitch, there’s a movie theater, a shopping mall, and a massive Homeplus Supermarket. Basically, an entire shopping plaza is part of the stadium, along with a museum that commemorates the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
Getting Tickets
Tickets prices were fair, and for the most part every seat was in the range of $7-$20. Most tickets were for general admission sections, meaning anyone could move to any part of the stadium without being in someone else’s seat. I bought tickets for one of the few reserved seats. It was first row on the sideline, and it only cost $15. Later on, I was able to freely move into the Ultra section on the North Stand, making it a bit of a nomadic experience.
The Food
Outside Food
In Korea, it’s pretty much universally known that outside food and beverages are allowed inside the stadium. With that in mind, I noticed the largest supplier of food for the venue was the Homeplus on the bottom floor. I’d imagine supermarket prices are the most optimal. Many people were buying XL pizzas from Homeplus bringing them in the venue. There is still the classic convenience store on the complex, but Homeplus is definitely an upgrade of an option over that. If more novelty options are your desire, there’s also an area right outside the entrance that has many food trucks, which featured pizza, chicken, and burgers.
Inside Food
Inside, it was pretty barebones. As grand and beautiful as the stadium is, it’s directly contrasted by how lackluster its food options are. As a first time guest, I typically like to choose something that is inside of the stadium to get the full effect of what atmosphere the team is trying to promote. Considering that FC Seoul is owned by one of the largest Grocery Store conglomerates in the country, I can see why they’re more comfortable with fans bringing in food from outside. For the most part, the only option inside is a bunch of walk-up GS25 convenience stores, and one lonely stand selling tteobokki and odeng soup.
For the uninitiated, Odeng is a fishcake that comes with a warm broth, and it’s a classic snack option in Korea. For picking my food choice, I went with the Odeng.
The Fans
The K-League isn’t getting a massive amount of attention at the moment. It’s not hard to tell that in Korea baseball is the biggest sport and football is left to deal with the scraps of sports attention. FC Seoul plays in a massive stadium for flashy appearances, but they would be comfortable with a stadium that seats around 20,000. The World Cup Stadium seats over 66,000. No matter what, there’s always going to be a lot of blank spaces, but that shouldn’t take away from the dedicated fans that call it home.
FC Seoul has their set of ultras that honestly put on a more passionate display than anything I have seen at a baseball game. While KBO teams have the advantage of big numbers behind them, the K League Ultras have more concentrated energy in their small group. They understand that they are in a small number, so this leaves little room for passive spectators. These fans are screaming louder and jumping around much more than anything you’ll catch at a baseball game. They were very friendly too, and anyone was welcome to join their club for the night.
Final Score
Purely from a sports fan’s perspective, I believe I enjoyed watching K-League more than baseball. To be fair, this isn’t a typical K-League experience, since there is no other place like the Seoul World Cup Stadium in Korea. Just going to see the stadium for itself is worth the journey, and it astounds me that I waited ten months to make the journey over. The quality on the pitch isn’t exactly Champions League material, but it’s still an entertaining product. The fans are loud and engaged. There is a feeling in the air that a culture is brewing. If you want to mainly be surrounded by a lot of people then a baseball game might be your style. But, for a sports enthusiast, a match at the World Cup Stadium is more entertaining and far less time consuming.
