By Yoon Chul
Staff reporter
The Red Devils, the official supporters of the South Korean national football team, decided Thursday to return to Seoul Plaza to lead the street cheering in the first group stage match against Greece on Saturday.
Seoul Metropolitan City said in a statement that the Red Devils and other World Cup sponsors reached an agreement over joint cheering at the square, the Mecca of Korean street cheering.
"They had misunderstandings," a Seoul City official told The Korea Times. "To make a festive Seoul Plaza during the World Cup, we tried to solve the problems and it worked in the end.
"In April, we announced only companies which would not make any corporate promotional campaigns can take part in the cheering events at the square. Hyundai Motor Company and SK Telecom agreed to it."
Previously, the Red Devils said they will withdraw from Seoul Plaza and put on its own cheering event at COEX Square in southern Seoul instead because they don't want the supporters' group to be used for commercial purposes. The two companies have secured Seoul Plaza for their own events.
During the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, Seoul Plaza emerged as a place for mass cheering as millions of local people, clad in red shirts, filled the area to root for the Taeguk Warriors during South Korea's miraculous campaign that lifted them into the semifinals.
At that time, some companies were accused of taking advantage of the cheering as well as the Red Devils for their promotion and profit making, raising worries over the identity of the organization as a bona-fide non-profit body for Korean football.
In order for a successful cheering event at Seoul Plaza, Seoul City will prepare various facilities such as water fountains and restrooms.