Staff in the football front office manage the team’s finance, contract, and also promote their players’ strengths to the public. For home games, the front office takes charge of managing and promoting the game as well. Most football teams have a front office to get sufficient support. The front office plays a crucial role in the players’ welfare, and it can also affect the quality of the games. Korea University (KU) also managed the front office to “revive the depressed university football games” by attracting students’ attention.
Korea University Football Front (KUFF) is the front office of KU’s football team. KUFF was established by organizing students who are interested in football. Although the Annual Ko-Yon Games are held every year, not many students know which players are on the KU football team. Therefore, KUFF members decided to support and promote the team to attract students to be interested in the football players as well as the Annual Ko-Yon Games. Furthermore, the members want to draw more attention to university football games.
Newly established in 2019, they recently held the second recruiting period until January 15. KUFF manages the soccer team’s affairs, produces promotional videos for the team, and organizes events. They also sponsor energy drinks, create KU players’ profiles, and distribute replica football uniforms. Besides this, KUFF provides information of University-League (U-League) games and encourages students to come and watch the games.
Attention Grabbers of the KU Football Team
The KU football team is composed of a promising player, Jeong Ho Jin (’18, Physical Education), who was selected as the Korean national team member of the 2019 Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) Under-20 (U-20) World Cup. The South Korean team eventually became the runner-ups in this world cup. KUFF recently uploaded five video clips of player Ho Jin’s interview, called Hojinhakgaeron, meaning “Introduction to player Ho Jin.” This video clip covered personal stories of the player, such as what motivated him to start playing football and what role he played in the national team.
Ahn Youn Kyoung (’16, Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering) and Heo Sik (’17, Life Sciences) were in charge of producing the video. They decided to introduce Jeong because, although he was a very competent player, he did not receive much attention compared to the professional players in the national team. Ahn served as an interviewer, and Heo was the chief director of the video. Ahn commented about her colleague Heo, “He edited the video until the morning of the day he joined the military.” Thanks to his efforts, the video clip received a great response, and many fans participated in the events.
According to Ahn, since Jeong was so famous due to the excitement of the U-20 World Cup at that time, KUFF was concerned about whether they would be able to cast him for the interview. However, Jeong willingly promised to do the interview with them, and he even gave a sweat suit of the Korean national players as a prize to one of the students who wrote supporting comments in their postings.
Participating in the U-League
U-League is a football league among universities in South Korea. The Korea Football Association (KFA) established the league in 2008 to normalize university football games. The KU football team recorded for the most wins in this league. They had won the league twice so far, in 2016 and 2017, tying with Yonsei University and Yong In University.
KUFF’s most significant responsibility is to draw audiences to watch the home games of U-League. Before the match, KUFF notifies the schedule of the games online and offline. They also offer presents for those who share the game posters. On the day of the game, KUFF sets up a booth in the Green Field and guides the audiences. They provide drinks and inform the audience which is the best seat to enjoy the games. During the game, KUFF takes photos and reports how the game is going on their Instagram Story.
After the game, KUFF manages on-the-ground events for the audience. They either choose randomly or pick some viewers through a quiz and give presents such as soccer shoes, football uniforms, or signed balls. They also interview some of the players. Due to their efforts, KUFF once attracted an audience of 220 people. According to Ahn, “Without all the support of the students, KUFF cannot manage to hold these events. We will try our best to keep on supporting the players.”
This year, KUFF is planning a “foreigner’s day” event. KUFF will invite international students and exchange students as well as Korean students for the games. In addition, KUFF wants to film a video log (vlog) of the players. According to Ahn, “Many fans are interested in the daily lives of KU football players. As these players are still enrolled students, we want to show how they attend classes, train in their teams, and manage their lives at the dormitory.”
The KU football team will be playing in group four in the U-League this year. As the players made significant achievements in the previous U-Leagues, they are expected to produce a remarkable result this year as well. KUFF will continue their support in managing the players and the games. They will also promote the games through SNS postings and holding events to draw a larger audience. Information about the KU football team will be uploaded immediately at www.instagram.com/kuff_official or www.facebook.com/kuff.official. Please give much support to KUFF and the KU football team.