“Who are we so proud of? South Korea!”
The chant rolled through Gwanghwamun Square on Friday morning, carried by drumbeats from the Red Devils and answered by fans in red shirts as South Korea opened its 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign against the Czech Republic.
The match kicked off at 11 a.m. in Korea, a rare weekday morning start that turned the square in central Seoul into a lunchtime stadium.
Office workers, students, families and international fans gathered around the large screens near the KT building and the statue of King Sejong, some arriving hours before kickoff to claim a spot under the June sun.
“I hope Oh plays today and scores a lot of goals for Korea,” said Yasin Kose, a 40-year-old soccer fan from Turkey, who joined the crowd to support Oh Hyeon-gyu after the Korean forward moved to Istanbul’s Besiktas J.K. in February.
“Turkish and Korean people are like brothers. That’s why I’m here — to see how Koreans feel, to feel the atmosphere and to support,” he said.
The cheering area around Gwanghwamun was divided into six sections, with the Korea Football Association, KT and the Red Devils estimating that up to 6,000 people were in the designated cheering zone.
Seoul’s real-time city data showed between 12,000 and 14,000 people in the wider Gwanghwamun Square area as of noon.
For 10-year-old Song In-ho, the morning start was not a problem. He came to the square with his father after arriving at 9:30 a.m., skipping school to watch the match with the crowd. The heat left him drenched in sweat, but not short of confidence.
“My favorite player is Son,” he said, referring to national team captain Son Heung-min. “Fighting, Son!”
For Korean fans, Gwanghwamun Square is more than a public viewing venue.
The plaza and nearby streets became symbolic ground for mass cheering during the 2002 World Cup, when South Korea made its historic run to the semifinals.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government deployed more than 190 safety personnel and 115 police officers for crowd control and safety management, while capping the designated cheering zone at 6,000 people.
Sisters Kim Ha-eun, 24, and Kim Ha-young, 23, traveled from Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, wearing Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC uniforms. The sisters had different favorite players — Ha-eun picked Kim Jin-gyu, while Ha-young named Cho Wi-je — but they shared the same hope for Korea.
“Mexico beat South Africa earlier, so we need a win today,” Ha-eun said. “Goals from Jeonbuk players would mean a lot to us.”
Ha-young said Korea would have to be smart against the Czech Republic’s physical style.
“We heard the Czech Republic players are very physical,” she said. “It would be good for our players to score from a header or a set piece.”
Ha-eun added, “We need a strong defense against the Czech Republic’s attacks.”
The 90-minute match ended in a 2-1 win for South Korea, giving the national team its first victory of the 2026 World Cup.
“It was the best!” said Ko Jun-hyeok, a 22-year-old fan who traveled from Busan to take part in the Gwanghwamun rally.
“Hwang In-beom did a great job!” Ko said, shouting in celebration of Hwang’s first World Cup goal. Hwang scored the equalizer minutes after Ladislav Krejci pushed the Czech team ahead in the second half.
When Oh Hyeon-gyu scored Korea’s second goal, putting the team on the brink of victory, the chants grew even louder.
“I was so excited when we scored the winning goal, and everyone here jumped up and down, shoulder to shoulder,” said Ko Yong-bin, 23. “I will never regret coming to Gwanghwamun Square today.”
Bianca Turalija, a 59-year-old football fan from Canada, and her colleague Rosemary Duncan from South Africa watched the match together in the square, adding another World Cup memory to years of cheering for Korea.
“Awesome. It was really, really cheerful,” Turalija said.
Duncan said they had stood next to Czech supporters, making the match even more entertaining.
“It was really fun because we could see both sides,” she said. “When the Koreans were quiet, they were loud. When the Koreans were loud, they were quiet. It was really funny. It was like the United Nations.”
For the two longtime residents, Friday’s rally brought back memories of previous World Cup campaigns in Korea.
“I was living in Daejeon in 2006. We all went downtown to cheer,” Duncan said. “People were so crazy, they started pushing over a police bus. There were fewer rules back then.”
Turalija said the scarves they wore on Friday were from the 2006 World Cup.
“We experienced the best of Korean cheer culture, like the Red Devils,” she said. “It was crazy. If Korea advances, we think it will get crazier.”
mjcha@heraldcorp.com
