The world is gripped by soccer fever with the World Cup underway in Brazil. During the next few weeks, about half of the world’s population will be riveted to their TVs to watch the planet’s biggest quadrennial soccer event.

Many Korean soccer fans are having sleepless nights to watch all the live action from the opposite side of the globe. They have to stay awake until the early morning, as all games start after 1 a.m.

But World Cup fever here is more subdued than in previous years. One factor is obviously the less-than-convenient broadcast schedule. But a bigger reason is the Sewol ferry tragedy that took place two months ago but is still unfolding. 

Yet tens of thousands of Red Devils, passionate supporters of the Korean national team, are expected to turn up in the Gwanghwamun area in Seoul on the days when the team plays.

Wearing red T-shirts and devil horns, they will reenact their familiar, enthusiastic street cheering, which is characterized by thunderous chants of “Dae-han-min-guk” to the accompaniment of hand-clapping. Dae-han-min-guk is the formal name of the nation in Korean.

The Brazil World Cup marks the eighth consecutive tournament Korea will be playing since 1986. Korea’s aim is to reach the last eight. In the 2002 event, which it cohosted with Japan, the Korean squad reached the semifinals, shattering all expectations. In the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, it made it to the round of 16.

Yet the odds are stacked against the Taegeuk Warriors. Few foreign soccer pundits predict that Korea will be able to get out of the group phase. Even among Koreans, only 42 percent believe Korea will be able to advance to the knockout stage, while 44 percent think otherwise.

Korea is grouped with Russia, Algeria and Belgium in Group H. In this group, Korea is the lowest-ranked nation. In the latest FIFA rankings released on June 5, it slipped two notches to 57th place, while Belgium climbed one notch to 11th and Algeria three notches to 22nd. Russia moved down a spot to 19th.

Among the 32 World Cup participants, Australia, in 62nd place, is the only country ranked lower than Korea.

Korea begins its World Cup campaign by taking on Russia on Wednesday. This opening match is of crucial importance for Korea, as it is likely to determine whether Korea can advance to the next round.

Many predict that Belgium will top Group H, with Korea and Russia vying for the remaining ticket to the round of 16. Algeria is seen standing little chance of moving beyond the group stage.

Russia has not advanced to the second round since 1994. So its primary goal is to get out of the group. For this, Russia appointed Fabio Capello, a renowned Italian coach who guided England to the 2010 World Cup finals, as manager of its national team.

Russia poses a tough challenge to Korea. The Russian squad is well organized, strong in defense and good at counterattacks. The Italian coach is said to have made the team’s once-leaky defense watertight. It conceded only five goals in qualifying, the fewest among the tournament’s European teams.

This means Korea’s attackers need a lot of movement to create scoring chances. But they should avoid making risky passes as the Russians are very good on the counterattack. Korea’s defenders will have to maintain good positioning to avoid giving their opponents chances.

Korea faces Algeria on June 23. Although many bookmakers predict the Taegeuk Warriors will prevail over Algeria, they should not underestimate their African opponents. Just like Russia, Algeria is determined to advance to the second round as it failed to do so in its three previous campaigns.

The Algerian squad is regarded as a dark horse that can beat the best teams. It proved its strength by winning its three warm-up games against European teams before heading to Brazil. It beat Slovenia 2-0, Armenia 3-1 and Romania 2-1. Algeria may provide an upset by beating Russia or Belgium or both.

Belgium is the last country that Korea takes on in the group phase. Experts are bullish on Belgium, with some ranking it among the top five participants in the Brazil World Cup, the other four being the host country, Argentina, Germany and Spain.

The European team is studded with stars, including Eden Hazard, Vincent Kompany, Romelu Lukaku, Kevin Mirallas, Thomas Vermaelen, Marouane Fellaini and Andan Januzaj. Barring the unexpected, Belgium is highly likely to advance past the group stage.

With two days left before the opening match, the Taegeuk Warriors are working hard to reach their peak form and put to rest concerns caused by their poor performance in warm-up games.

In their final tune-up with Ghana, they were clobbered 4-0. The match was especially disappointing as it showed that the national squad had left the gaping holes in its defense unplugged. Before the match with Ghana, the squad was defeated 1-0 by Tunisia.

Yet Korean soccer fans pin much hope on the leadership of the head coach, Hong Myung-bo, one of its football legends. He surprised many in 2012 by leading the lackluster Korean soccer team to a bronze medal at the London Olympics.

Hong also has rich World Cup experience. He played in four consecutive World Cups as a defensive back starting in 1990 and served as the skipper of the national team in 2002. The talented coach is believed to have developed a formula for victory based on his experience.

Objectively speaking, the Korean team faces an uphill battle in its bid to advance past the group stage and on to the targeted elite eight. To attain this goal, it needs a big morale boost as well as steely resolve to win. So ardent support from the Red Devils and other Koreans is strongly called for.

If the national team puts up a good fight against its opponents, it will help lift the gloomy mood following the ferry disaster and energize Korean society. In this regard, the Taegeuk Warriors are charged with a mission of great importance.

By Yu Kun-ha

Yu Kun-ha is chief editorial writer of The Korea Herald. He can be reached at khyu@heraldcorp.com. ― Ed.