Korea v USA Red Devils PreGame Tailgate Party this Saturday 1-4pm

Yes y’all, it’s the ol Tavern owner – back temporarily to pontificate on the announcement of a Red Devils tailgate prior to the USMNT v Korea friendly in Harrison, New Jersey this Saturday. Stoked -and angry I can’t make it personally – recovering from a long term soccer injury resulting in a recent surgery to repair my right achilles – but mostly stoked, this is amazing on several fronts.

1. It’s not every day one gets to see Team Korea play in the United States (where the Tavern is metaphysically located).
2. There are no records of a bonafide tailgate 미국 style prior to a KNT game (maybe it’s happened before but Tavern records only deal with football records, not on fan organized tailgate parties). * stay tuned to the end, we’ll reveal the unusual and fascinating circumstance of the only time KNT played a friendly previously on US soil. I’m gonna have to call on the Tavern Statistician for this special research request!

Jinseok has a banger of a preview for the clash between the US and Korea very soon, but I did want to highlight just how brilliant this idea of a tailgate is. The different World Cup cycles have allowed the Tavern to spotlight different watch parties in the past, not only to congregate, but to have a real sense of community around the things that connect us, about the things we are passionate about. While tailgating is a long held American football tradition, it’s fascinating to re-contextualize that here outside New York, another bastion for the Korean diaspora in America. Before I go further, one of the Fairpoint Media crew (and former Tavern contributor) Kevin Kim has been busy figuring out the logistics for the tailgate party AND also put together an amazing video on Instagram to promo it, check it out:

Click HERE it’ll take you to a Partiful RSVP page – NOTE: you have to RSVP to get the exact address to the tailgating lot as it’s nearby but not exactly in the Sports Illustrated Stadium parking lot (apparently Red Bulls/Gotham FC don’t really allow for tailgating). Details include: “…from 1P – 4P Music, limited beverages, BBQ, and beer pong. So BYOB! Or food! There will be personal cars so we can stow away gear (or bags) for the game. Come chat with fellow diehards, content creators, kit enthusiasts – anyone in love with the beautiful game. This is a communal event. Everyone and anyone is welcome!!!” $20 to park / free if you walk in. NOTE: since I can’t drive (my right achilles in a boot), I tried to see if I could take the train up to the tailgate + game, but sadly the local Maryland Marc train not running on weekends- If you’re near DC, Amtrak up to Newark Penn station, transfer to a PATH train towards Newark-World Trade Center and get off at the Harrison station -it’ll drop you right outside the stadium + within walking distance of the tailgate! If you’re not driving – that PATH train might do – just check with Amtrak and PATH to make sure trains are running on time. on time.

*OK now for some other interesting stuff: I had to un-retire the Tavern statistician against his wishes (“야 새끼야 , 이리 와 !!”) and he reluctantly informed me that the last time the US hosted the KNT for a friendly was February 1st…2014!?! Shockingly, the ol Tavern Owner does not recall that game, though the Tavern crew were not only around and in full operational mode, contributing writer Jeremy Paek was THERE to witness a disappointing 2:0 loss to the hosts at the LA Galaxy’s (insert whatever corporation shilled for naming rights) stadium to report on the game and atmosphere. Rewinding 11 year old Tavern posts from that year – specifically Jeremy’s report – it was unlikely there was a Red Devils tailgate, not because there wasn’t a sizable Korean population in L.A., nor was there particularly bad/cold weather, but due to the lack of vibes given it was a “fringes only” friendly. It wasn’t an official FIFA sanctioned international window; it’s similar to the EAFF summer tournament that features mostly domestic based K-League and J-League players. 11 years ago they flew over a squad without Son and the other European based Korean players – against a US squad of MLS-ers. Ergo, Koreatown didn’t show up en mass to see the KNT lose to a pair of Wondolowski goals. No wonder I forgot and scrubbed out that memory, but the Tavern’s institutional memory did not. Thanks Tavern Statistician (and sorry for the rough treatment my guy). 

Interestingly, there are some parallels to that game in 2014 to this upcoming friendly: Hong Myung-bo was manager then, and was getting a bit of stick for some lackluster results in charge of the KNT in the lead up to the 2014 World Cup looming that summer. Other players from that friendly like Lee Geun-ho and Kim Jin-su are no longer part of the KNT setup, save for one: on the bench that day backing up Jung Sung-ryong between the sticks was Kim Seung-gyu. After all these years, the FC Tokyo keeper is back in the US, and on the roster for this international window for Saturday and against Mexico next Tuesday. Not a parallel, but still interesting is the fact that opposite Hong on the US technical area was none other than Jurgen Klinsmann.

However, unlike 2014, this resembles more of a genuine World Cup tuneup match, as it’s officially a FIFA sanctioned international break. Hong this time gets to choose a wider array of players abroad at his disposal. It’s his second merry-go-round with managing the KNT after a disastrous 2014 World Cup misadventure and…while not perfect by any means, seems to have improved the makeup with younger and more technically gifted players. Not coincidentally, there’s a more impressive pedigree of clubs the players ply their trade from, including Bayern Munich, European champions in PSG, players from England and other respectable clubs form the core of this squad. 2 from the MLS is different, granted, but consider it’s Son Heung-min as one of the two, not too shabby of a call up from an MLS side. Players from the K-League like Lee Dong-gyeong and Kim Jin-gyu offer much dynamism and quality to this national side, undoubtedly a step up from 2014’s K-Leaguers that struggled against what MLS had at the time. Last but not least, as Jinseok pointed out in the previous Tavern post, Jens Castrop has been called up and set to be the first biracial player in KNT uniform (with nods towards Casey Yu-jin Phair having broke that barrier for the KWNT in the 2023 Women’s World Cup)- that’s pretty huge. 

As a parent of bi-racial children, seeing Jens in the roster elevates what could be considered a meaningless friendly into something outright meaningful. In time perhaps this could be seen as an important inflection point in the history of Korean National Team. I consider myself a citizen of the world, but my identity, as is my family’s, has layers of historical complexity. We are survivors on the world stage, and as such, it is heartening to me to see that this family- the Korean diaspora at large- is getting a little more diverse. And that can only be better for Korea in so many aspects – including something as trivial -yet vitally important- as football. 

대한민국 y’all!  Raise a ruckus in NJ for me