All over the globe, South Korea is known for its rich culture. KDramas are devotedly watched in other countries, and KPop groups have fans from all parts of the world. Their movies are hits with Miracle in Cell No. 7 and Train to Busan. Not only in culture, but they have risen to the ashes. They have prospered to become the economic powerhouse we now know it to be. Moreover, South Korea has also made its mark in sports by cultivating talent that has brought the nation together, united in supporting them in competitions, be it on a national or international level.
Through sports broadcasting, South Koreans watch these sporting events, single-event or year-long seasons, via TV or online platforms. As these companies portray these sports more dramatically by stirring up the audiences’ emotions in intense competitions and national victories, more and more people invest in supporting teams and national athletes. This, then, becomes what we call sports nationalism – a social phenomenon where sports bring about collective solidarity of the citizens to the nation.
Among the different kinds of sports, there are dominant ones that have made their way to the citizen’s hearts and have made them avid fans that wait eagerly to watch every season.
Here are some of the most popular sports in South Korea:
Football
If you’ve seen the KDrama “Weightlifting Fairy Kim Bok Joo”, their most famous line is the question, “Do you like Messi?” We can observe that this is a manifestation of their country’s love for football as Lionel Messi, an iconic football player, becomes a conversation starter. It’s not only established as South Korea’s national sport, but the nation genuinely loves it. Many people follow the football league, K-League, closely and bet on their favourite teams through Toto websites. You can verify which Toto forum websites are safe playgrounds through sureman01.com. Football was among the first leagues established in South Korea back in 1983.
Basketball
Basketball started becoming popular in the 1990s and remains one of the dominant sports sought by viewers. South Korea’s national basketball team is known to perform well and most likely reach the championships. They have competed in the Asian Basketball Championship and have won 25 medals and more. It was the most popular sport before but was later topped off by football in the 2000s.
Baseball
Baseball was one of the sports that paved the way for sports nationalism and the industry of sports broadcasting to flourish. It was the first to start a league, the Korean Professional Baseball League, back in 1982. When it comes to baseball international events and competitions, South Korea is known to be one of the top-performing teams. They’ve won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics before for baseball. The national team always enters the World Baseball Classic and often stands out among the countries.
These are only some of the popular sports in the country. As they greatly value sports, the number of sports they explore and become passionate about continuously grows. Archery, volleyball, martial arts are some of the sports South Koreans known to do well in. They try to enjoy every sport they can cherish as sports has been one of the most effective tools in creating harmony among their nation.
