"Be the Reds!" was a phrase popularized on T-shirts during the 2002 FIFA World Cup by supporters of the South Korean soccer team. The team's jersey color is red, and its supporters are known as the Red Devils, having similar nomenclature as supporters of the Premier League's Manchester United. While the true intentions of the creator of the phrase is unknown, many believe it to be a literal translation of a phrase in Korean, thus the practical translation should read "We are Red" or "Be Red". Qualifying countries The 2002 FIFA World Cup (Official name: 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan) was held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. ... First international South Korea 5 - 3 Mexico (London, England; August 2, 1948) Largest win South Korea 16 - 0 Nepal (Incheon, South Korea; September 29, 2003) Worst defeat Sweden 12 - 0 South Korea (London, England; August 5, 1948) World Cup Appearances 6 (First in 1954) Best result Fourth place, 2002 AFC... For other meanings of this term, see Red Devils. ... FA Premier League logo The FA Premier League (often referred to as the Barclays Premiership or just The Premiership in the UK and as the Barclays English Premier League or the English Premier League or the EPL internationally) is a league competition for English Football clubs located at the top... Manchester Uniteds emblem Manchester United F.C. (often abbreviated to Man United or just Man U, pronounced man-yoo) is an English football club based at Old Trafford in Greater Manchester. ...

Origin

The first incarnation of the T-Shirt featured a white brush stroked silk screened logo on a red T-shirt. The logo also appeared on hats, bandannas, socks, wristbands, backpacks, shoes, napkins, underwear, and probably other things as well. This was possible because the original logo was purposely not copyrighted or trademarked, to ensure widespread distribution of "Be the Reds!" items for supporters of the Korean soccer team everywhere.

Controversy

In late 2003 someone trademarked the phrase and began selling "Be the Reds!" items commercially. In retaliation, the person who first made the logo on a T-shirt trademarked the font in which it was written, thus forcing the owner of the phrase to print his shirts in a different font. Those shirts did not sell as well as the phrase owner had hoped. Because of those two trademarks, no further "Be the Reds!" items (in the original font) have been made legally since 2003. The Korean Football Association has since abandoned the slogan, opting for their own copyrighted one, "Reds Go Together!". However, it is unlikely that the new slogan will be anywhere near as popular due to the widespread distribution of memorabilia with the previous slogan, combined with the success of the Korean team in the previous world cup that likely won't be matched. In addition, the fact that the 2002 World Cup was held within Korea made fans out of people who would probably not have been so otherwise. It is therefore highly likely that Be The Reds! will always be the slogan of choice for fans regardless of what the KFA decides.

Other sightings

In late 2002, Korean soccer star Ahn Jung-Hwan made his Japan debut (in the J-League) playing for the Shimizu S-Pulse. As their colors were white and orange, one group of entrepaneurs cleverly created "Be the Orange!" T-shirts written in the same font. Few were bought, and the fad never caught on as they had hoped. Ahn Jung-Hwan (born January 27, 1976 in Paju, Gyeonggi) is a South Korean football player; he made world headlines by scoring the winning golden goal for Korea against Italy in the 2002 World Cup second round and sending Korea into the quarter finals. ... The J. League (in Japanese: Jリーグ, Officially 日本プロサッカーリーグ) is the top professional football league in Japan. ... Shimizu S-Pulse(清水エスパルス) is a J. League team. ...

Some fans of the J-League's Urawa Reds have also been seen wearing "Be the Reds!" memorabilia, as it calls out their team by both color and name. The Urawa Red Diamonds (Japanese: 浦和レッドダイヤモンズ), also known as Urawa Reds (Japanese: 浦和レッズ), are one of the most popular football clubs in the J. League. ...

While it never caught on as a widespread fad, few supporters of Major League Baseball's Cincinnati Reds have also been known to sport clothing bearing the same phrase. Major League Baseball (MLB) is the highest level of play in professional baseball in the world. ... Major league affiliations National League (1890-present) Central Division (1994-present) West Division (1969-1993) American Association (1882-1889) National League (1876-1880) Major league titles World Series titles (5) 1990 â€¢ 1976 â€¢ 1975 â€¢ 1940 1919 NL Pennants (9) 1990 â€¢ 1976 â€¢ 1975 â€¢ 1972 1970 â€¢ 1961 â€¢ 1940 â€¢ 1939 1919 AA Pennants (1...

External links

• Tourism website about 2002 Fifa World Cup.
• 2002 sales of the "Be The Reds" T-Shirts.
• News article "Red Devils to Sport New Official T-Shirt and Slogan".