“They have 24 months to squeeze out hell”: Will the son sign a contract with MLS in Asia? | MLS

South Korean baseball fans have long been accustomed to organizing weekends around Major League Baseball (MLB) schedules, and it is time for football supporters in the country to do the same with the MLS.

Son Heung Min has started a two-year contract Los Angeles Football Clubthe largest club on his homeland after attackers helped Tottenham Hotspur become the largest club in his homeland (even if the claims of nearly 13 million fans must have been exaggerated), is also the largest club on his homeland. It’s time to see what he can do in Los Angeles and what the club can do.

“They have been 24 months to fill hell,” Sasi Kumar, a former founder of Red Card Global, an international and sports marketing agency in Singapore, told The Guardian. “The business opportunity is obvious, staring at LAFC.”

For years, his son has been a leading figure in Asian football: the Golden Boots and Puskas Prize winner, who canceled one of the biggest trophys in European football months ago. One of the biggest stars in the world’s most popular leagues has long been national pride in South Korea and appeals in Asia. It fueled his superstar. The son helped ensure that now almost all talented Korean stars want to go straight to England’s top tier.

MLS enjoys almost anywhere in the same figure – traditionally with little interest in the Asian League and is hardly considered the destination of 33 years old. After several years of debate in South Korea, where should the son go – clubs like Barcelona are often mentioned. Even as the striker fought for his body and fitness last season, Europe still had a choice and most people wanted him to stay. Moving to Saudi Arabia is always unlikely. For players who have never played in the K League, participating in competitors’ Asian matches may not be smoothly apart from his homeland, where he has been the face of more than 30 brands. still, MLS Not a popular choice at first.

“At the beginning, the fans’ reactions were divided because some wanted their son to stay in Europe and play in the Champions League for at least one season,” said Lee Seung-Mo, a writer and journalist in Seoul. “But, after the son explained why he chose LAFC and MLS, most fans now understand and support his decision.” The country in the United States is also going to lead the World Cup, which is likely the son’s fourth and last appearance in the game.

Lee admits that not all fans who watch their son in England will watch him in the United States. “In terms of viewership, the Premier League has the most fans, but most son fans want to watch MLS, which is not 100% in MLS.”

Those years at the peak of the competition made his son an idol in his homeland, and he could surpass any competition he had participated in. “Whenever the Spurs play, you’ll support him from all Asians, he’s a cute character and you don’t need to be a Spurs fan to like him.”

LAFC has advantages. While MLS may not be EPL, the United States is not the United Kingdom either. Economically, South Korea has established strong ties with the United States, exporting nearly 20% of its economy to the United States in 2024, compared with only 1% in the United Kingdom. “The Korean market has a connection with the United States; it is a huge market for Korean beauty products, electronics, cars, mobile phones, and more,” Kumar said. “The son provides a platform and opportunity to enter the market with a huge asset. The obvious thing about LAFC is touring Asia, and they should actively look for brand and content partnerships in different markets. LAFC’s business team will work overtime to sell digital assets, image, image rights, and work with global brands like Samsung and KIA.”

Such Korean companies have been involved in sports (K. League once – and are still largely based on company ownership, and Hyundai has had a huge influence on the Korean Football Association over the years), and there should be a lot of knowledge on the contrary. “The general knowledge of American sports is that they are arguably the best in sports marketing, and I’m sure both LAFC and MLS will do their best in the Korean market,” Lee said.

The fact that Los Angeles makes such a big signature has dropped well. Steve Han is the director of FIFA’s Los Angeles Korean content and the host of Fairpoint Podcast and witnessed the excitement. “At the introductory press conference, there were Korean journalists participating in the LAFC shirt,” Han told the Guardian. “⁠ LAFC has become one of the richest-branded clubs in the MLS over the years. So far, the content launched by the club has really excited fans. The stage is to give the son a icing on the cake.”