“Arsenal is the FA Cup winningest team, so it’s an honor to see the real thing.” (Lee Seung-hwan, chairman of Arsenal Korea)
“I want to hear (Tottenham Hotspur) the championship trophy.” (Tottenham Hotspur Korea Supporters Chairman Lee Da-bin)
“If we (Manchester City) meet Tottenham in the final, wouldn’t we be able to win?” (Seongjun Kim, Chairman of Manchester City Supporters Club)
On the afternoon of the 28th, an interesting event was held at Devil’s Door in COEX, Samseong-dong, Seoul. The 2022-23 Emirates FA Cup tour, called the English Football Association (FA) Cup, which started in 1871 and marks its 152nd anniversary this year, landed in Seoul via Sydney, Australia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Singapore.
The FA Cup is broadcast on SPOTV, which has the rights to broadcast the English Premier League. Fans gathered under the flags of Spotify and the FA. Some fans of Arsenal, Manchester City, and Tottenham Hotspur, officially recognized by each club in Korea, gathered.
This tour was prepared as a strategy for the globalization of FA. It is touring the Asia Pacific region for the first time ever. FA Commercial Director Naveen Singh explained, “By bringing trophies to Seoul, we can attract more fans to the dramatic story of the FA Cup. We will show why the FA Cup is the greatest competition worldwide.”
Competition to enter the venue was fierce. About 20 people were selected from each meeting. Fans who love the Premier League gathered together, so the enthusiasm for cheering was great. I saw Chelsea fans like a small island,
While the match between Premier League Leicester City and League Two (fourth league) Walsall was broadcast live due to local circumstances in England, former Leicester captain Wes Morgan and Liverpool’s heyday Emil Heskey were connected via video before the event. Morgan led them to an FA Cup win in 2011 and Heskey won the 2001 Liverpool title.
Fans were busy enjoying food and taking commemorative photos in front of the championship cup. Comedian Kim Seung-hye, who is well known as the Gavengers of Goal, and Eva. Lee Hye-jeong and others also visited the event. Kim Seung-hye exclaimed her love for football, saying, “I am grateful and honored to be invited to such a good place. I went to England and watched the Premier League.”
A subtle war of nerves continued even among the fans of the club who supported each other. When the moderator asked who could raise their voice to cheer more, it resonated so loudly that it felt as if the roof of the venue would be ripped off. It felt like I was at Etihad Stadium (Man City’s home ground), Emirates Stadium (Arsenal’s home ground), and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. If it was possible to stay up until dawn, the match between Preston and Tottenham scheduled for 3:00 am on the 29th or the match between Manchester United and Reading starting at 5:00 would be expected.
After halftime and the end of the game, prizes were offered through quizzes. Interestingly, there was a case where a Tottenham fan took an Arsenal jersey and a Man City fan took a Tottenham jersey. Arsenal fans pranked the winning Tottenham fans by shouting “wear it, wear it”.
Lee Da-bin, chairman of Tottenham Korea Supporters, said, “There are fans who are very interested in the Premier League itself, not just because of Son Heung-min. It was really hard to watch the broadcast,” he said, thanking Spotify, the broadcaster.
Lee Seung-hwan, chairman of Arsenal Korea, also said, “(Fans) participated in a really good event on Spotify, and I’m really grateful. Arsenal are likely to win the league now. Although eliminated from the FA Cup, I think they will maintain their status as the most winning team.” He did not forget to say thank you. 메이저놀이터
Manchester City beat Arsenal 1-0 this morning to advance to the round of 16. Manchester City Supporters Club Chairman Kim Seong-joon said, “Thank you for hosting a great event on Spotify. I will prepare well for the FA Cup (next round). No matter who I meet, I can win and go to the final. I hope that I can meet a strong team and play a good match. “, he sang of victory.
The color of the uniform was different at the venue where the heat of soccer spread intensely until midnight, but there were no boundaries. Before the FA Cup, everyone was a fan of football. It was an FA Cup tour filled with warmth amidst a small battle of nerves.