In 1994, the World Cup craze became intertwined with Taiwanese soccer. In the 1990s, with the globalization of the sports industry, international tournaments also sought to expand business opportunities in overseas markets, and the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and 1994 World Cup in the United States were the first to introduce the concept of splitting the sponsorship and broadcasting rights of the tournaments. This has transformed the Olympics and the World Cup from international events that originally lost money into the hottest moneymakers. (1) International sports organizations and well-known commercial brands are working together to establish a new business model, and Asia is an emerging market that many sponsors are targeting.
For example, in order to develop its business in Asia, the famous sports brand Adidas entered the Taiwanese soccer market by sponsoring the Chinese team's jerseys, and on the eve of the 15th World Cup in 1994, Adidas held the Adidas Cup futsal tournament at the Zhongshan Soccer Stadium in Taipei, to warm up for the World Cup and to make it seem as if Taiwan and the World Cup were in the same league. McDonald's, which opened on Taipei's Minsheng East Road in 1984, was not far behind. After becoming a major sponsor of the World Cup in 1994, McDonald's has not only launched limited edition souvenirs in Taiwan, but has also introduced World Cup fever into the daily lives of Taiwanese people through special events and meals.
The promotion by FIFA and various corporations made the World Cup's appeal unquestioned in Taiwan in the 1990s. Taiwan's interest in sports also shifted with the change in the ROC's eligibility to participate in the World Cup, from events featuring the Chinese team to professional competitions in countries around the world.
Prior to the 1980s, the Republic of China (ROC) was mostly interested in qualifying for amateur international sports competitions. This is because prior to 1988, many major international sporting events (such as the Olympics or the Asian Games) were open only to amateurs. As the Republic of China wanted to gain more visibility internationally, it focused its participation on amateur competitions where it could still participate as a nation. However, after the 1981 Lausanne Agreement (2), the ROC began to participate in international sporting events only under the name of Chinese Taipei. This changed the country's strategy of participating in sports competitions from fighting for the ROC's proper name to fighting for international exposure. Professional events of global scale, such as the World Cup, have become the center of Taiwan's attention. These competitions are of a higher caliber and are more enjoyable to watch, and have opened the eyes of the Taiwanese people.
As the World Cup fervor festered in Asia, the FIFA began to consider holding World Cup matches in the region, and in a 1990 interview with the media, Xavier Lange said: "Holding World Cup matches in Asia is one of our top priorities. China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and a unified South Korea were all possible hosts. Later in 1994, FIFA officially finalized the plan and expected the 2002 World Cup to be held in Asian countries. At the 1996 FIFA General Assembly, South Korea and Japan actively sought to host the World Cup. Japan, after the Duha tragedy in 1993, was determined to raise the standard of domestic soccer in order to dominate the World Cup. South Korea, on the other hand, has focused its efforts on securing key positions in the AFC in order to expand its influence in international soccer affairs.
Physical Education Encyclopedia
Duha Tragedy:
The Duha Tragedy was an incident in which Japan was eliminated from the Asian qualifying round of the 1994 World Cup in the United States. Prior to their match against Iraq, Japan had topped their Asian group with two wins, one draw and one loss, and with a win in their final match, Japan would have made their first ever
advancement
World Cup record. In the first five minutes of the match, player Chira Miura scored the first goal with a header, and Japan was still leading two to one when the match reached eighty minutes.
As the game entered the ninetieth minute, Iraq launched a counterattack by breaking the ball in the midfield and quickly advanced to the edge of the penalty area to take a shot. Japan's goalkeeper, Mr. Matsunaga, was able to parry the ball away from the goal line, and Iraq was awarded only a corner kick. But in the next instant, the soccer ball was passed to a defender who cut in from the side, at which point the ball arced high in the air and flew into the body of an Iraqi player who jumped up from the penalty area. In an instant, the headbutt that made the Japanese anchors lose their words, the headbutt that is always shown every time the World Cup recap program is broadcast in Japan, the nightmare that would not wake up, happened.
Nearly half a minute after the incident, Kubota, who was the Japanese anchor at the time, was silent for a long time before saying grimly, "There's nothing we can do about it," and the blue jerseys of the Japanese team fell all over the field as the final whistle blew. The blue jerseys of the Japanese team filled the Duha Stadium as the final whistle blew.
The tragic fifth match between Japan and Iraq was broadcast live in Japan's late-night hours, but the broadcast ratings reached 48 percent, which is equivalent to tens of millions of Japanese who witnessed the final moments of the match. After the tragedy of Duha, Japan started to move for soccer.
