2002 FIFA World Cup: Difference between revisions

South Korea and Japan were selected as hosts by FIFA on 31 May 1996. Initially, South Korea, Japan and [[Mexico]] presented three rival bids. South Korea's entry into the race was seen by some as a response to the bid of political and sporting rival Japan.<ref name="Varcoe">{{Cite news|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2002/05/18/soccer/international-soccer/beyond-the-limits-of-normalcy/|title=Beyond the limits of normalcy|last=Varcoe|first=Fred|date=18 May 2002|work=[[The Japan Times Online]]|access-date=25 April 2019|language=en-US|issn=0447-5763|archive-date=4 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104145047/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2002/05/18/soccer/international-soccer/beyond-the-limits-of-normalcy/|url-status=live}}</ref> FIFA leaders were split on whom to favor as host as politics within the world governing body held sway.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2002/05/19/soccer/international-soccer/taming-the-bulldog/|title=Taming the 'bulldog'|last=Varcoe|first=Fred|date=19 May 2002|work=[[The Japan Times Online]]|access-date=25 April 2019|language=en-US|issn=0447-5763|archive-date=25 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190425015052/https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2002/05/19/soccer/international-soccer/taming-the-bulldog/|url-status=live}}</ref> With Mexico regarded as a long shot, the battle to host the tournament came down to South Korea and Japan. The two Asian rivals went on a massive and expensive PR blitz around the world, prompting Sultan [[Ahmad Shah of Pahang|Ahmad Shah]], the head of the [[Asian Football Confederation]], to step in.<ref name="Varcoe"/> FIFA boss [[João Havelange]] had long backed the Japanese bid,<ref name=":0"/> but his rival in FIFA, UEFA chief [[Lennart Johansson]], sought to undermine Havelange's plans.<ref name=":0" /> [[UEFA]] and the AFC viewed co-hosting between the two Asian rivals as the best option.<ref name=":0" /> South Korea and Japan were finally faced with a choice of having no World Cup or a shared World Cup and they reluctantly chose to go along with co-hosting.<ref name=":0" /> South Korea and Japan were chosen unanimously as co-hosts in preference to Mexico.<ref>{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Grahame L. |date=1 June 1996 |title=A Political Football Lands in Japan and South Korea |url=http://articles.latimes.com/1996-06-01/sports/sp-10647_1_south-korea |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=22 July 2017 |archive-date=17 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230417061138/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-06-01-sp-10647-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> This was the first World Cup to be hosted by more than one country, the second being the [[2026 FIFA World Cup|2026 World Cup]], which will be hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada. This is also the first ever World Cup to be hosted in Asia, the other being the [[2022 FIFA World Cup|2022 World Cup]], hosted by [[Qatar]], twenty years later. The general secretary of South Korea's bidding committee, Song Young-shik, stated that FIFA was interested in staging some matches in North Korea in order to aid [[Korean reunification]], but it was ruled out.<ref>{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Grahame L. |date=5 June 1996 |title=North Korea Enters World Cup 2002 Mix |page=C4 |work=The Los Angeles Times |url=https://latimes.newspapers.com/clip/16185329/north_korea_and_2002_fifa_world_cup/ |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |access-date=1 January 2018 |archive-date=2 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102073905/https://latimes.newspapers.com/clip/16185329/north_korea_and_2002_fifa_world_cup/ |url-status=live }} {{open access}}</ref>

At the time the decision was made, Japan had never qualified for a World Cup finalsfinal (although the Japanese did subsequently qualify for the [[1998 FIFA World Cup|1998 competition]]). The only other countries to have been awarded a World Cup without previously having competed in a final tournament are Italy in [[1934 FIFA World Cup|1934]] and Qatar in 2022 (Uruguay hosted the first World Cup in [[1930 FIFA World Cup|1930]] so there was no prior tournament; they were defending Olympic champions from [[1928 Summer Olympics|1928]]).