Fans fill stadium as Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur clash in Seoul

Thousands of football fans gathered at what carried the energy of a festival outside Seoul World Cup Stadium hours before two of the biggest European football clubs were set to meet in the first of two back-to-back preseason games.

Fans don Kim Min-jae kits ahead of a preseason game between Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich for the 2024 Coupang Play Series. [MARY YANG]

Thousands of football fans gathered at what carried the energy of a festival outside Seoul World Cup Stadium in western Seoul hours before two of the biggest European football clubs were set to kick off for the first of two back-to-back preseason games.

People carried a mix of handheld paper and electric fans, with many holding frozen water bottles and donning a variety of sun-blocking hats, as they joined the crowd waiting to enter the stadium for an exhibition game between Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich in the final match of the 2024 Coupang Play Series.

Nearly everyone was decked out in football gear, with Son Heung-min’s No. 7 kits as the clear fan favorite, though plenty of Kim Min-jae jerseys could be spotted on the grounds outside of the pitch.

Thousands arrive at Seoul World Cup Stadium hours before kickoff. [MARY YANG]

The stadium was hours away from one of the hottest — literally — events of the summer in Seoul, as the Bundesliga giants were set to take on Spurs in their first visit to Korea. Long lines under the sun stretched outside of every booth, some handing out beer and others offering merch or a photo-op with the Spurs mascot.

And Spurs would play at Seoul World Cup Stadium for the second time this week, having faced an all-star Team K League in a friendly on Wednesday, beating the cobbled-together club 4-3.

It was an exclusive event, with tickets only available for purchase to online shopping platform Coupang WOW members — who braved long queues for a chance at securing an elusive seat.

One person outside of the stadium with his friends — one fanning another as they waited to enter the stadium — said getting tickets was a group effort. There were about 20,000 people ahead of him in the online queue.

Fans prepare to enter the stadium. [MARY YANG]

But unlike what could also, theoretically, have been a UEFA Champions League affair — many people weren’t there as diehard fans of either club set on trashing fans of the other with a colorful string of words not found in any official dictionary.

And others were simply excited to watch what they believed to be some of the most talented Korean football players in the world.

“We can see Son and we can see all Korean best players, also,” said Yang Ji-seok, 39, outside of the stadium before kickoff. “That’s the reason we came here. That’s enough.”

Yang and his friends had found a spot in the shade with two hours to go before kickoff, right across from one of the subway exits and a smattering of food carts selling hotdogs and fried squid.

Son Heung-min and by default Tottenham Hotspur fan Yang Ji-seok, center, attends his third Coupang Play Series on Saturday. [MARY YANG]

“I’m not a Tottenham fan, I’m just a fan of Son,” Yang said. “I’ve been watching all Tottenham games because of Son.”

Yang said he’s been a football fan since the 1998 World Cup in France, and he remembers watching every Korea game during the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan.

“We have our Korean players in both teams,” he said. “Maybe all the fans here are not Bayern fans or Tottenham fans.”

He’s been at every Coupang Play Series since the festival launched in 2022, and he said today he saw “so many people" — as the view of the subway exit was clear from his spot in the shade.

People await to take a photo with the mascot at a Tottenham Hotspur fan booth outside of the stadium before kickoff. [MARY YANG]

And this year, he came with a friend — who also went with him to Wednesday’s game between Tottenham and Team K League — wearing a Bayern Munich shirt. Though the friend said his favorite player was "old-timer" Thomas Muller, not Korean national team defender Kim Min-jae.

Another Bayern Munich fan — who was wearing a No. 3 Kim kit — said he didn't mind being outnumbered by Spurs jerseys. He was there for Kim.

"He's the best defender, worldwide defender," Jeon Jun-ho, a longtime football fan and amateur player, said. "Last season was a disappointment for [Kim]. Not me, just him. We will... expect more this season."

BY MARY YANG [mary.yang@joongang.co.kr]