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Officials: 2002 World Cup will go ahead as scheduled
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea is confident it can meet all the requirements for playing host to the 2002 soccer World Cup, although the government isn't sure whether it will build a soccer-only stadium for the event."The issue is what kind of a stadium in Seoul we will use for opening and semifinals, not whether or not we will hold the World Cup," Park Jin-bae, a spokesman for South Korea's Office of Preparation for 2002 FIFA World Cup, said Wednesday.
"There are no other problems. Everything else, including cooperation with the Japanese preparation office, is going very well," he said.
Japan and South Korea have been chosen as co-hosts of the 2002 World Cup, the first premier soccer event to be held in Asia.
The organizing committee downplayed a news report from London that FIFA, soccer's world governing body, may move the 2002 World Cup to Britain if South Korea abandons plans to build stadiums because of a prolonged economic crisis.
The report by The Times of London said that Britain, with many stadiums already in place, might be pressed into service as an alternate host.
The report came after South Korean Prime Minister Kim Jong-pil questioned last week the wisdom of building a soccer-only stadium in Seoul, citing the country's economic difficulties.
The prime minister suggested instead that an existing stadium be remodeled for the World Cup.
The previous government had promised to build a stadium in the South Korean capital for the 2002 World Cup, but the new government of President Kim Dae-jung reportedly has been moving to cancel the plan after setting a tight budget for next year.
South Korea was forced to accept a $58 billion bailout package from the International Monetary Fund in December to save its faltering economy.
South Korea has chosen 10 cities to hold its portion of the 2002 World Cup. New stadiums are already being built in four cities while six others, including Seoul, have yet to decide on their construction plans.
In Seoul, the government is considering remodeling an existing multipurpose stadium or using a baseball park.
Thousands of South Korean soccer fans rallied in Seoul earlier this week, urging the government to build a soccer stadium.
NEXT ROUNDS: Round of 16 || Quarter-finals || Semi-finals
GROUP A: Brazil, Morocco, Norway, Scotland
GROUP B: Austria, Cameroon, Chile, Italy
GROUP C: Denmark, France, Saudi Arabia, South Africa
GROUP D: Bulgaria, Nigeria, Paraguay, Spain
GROUP E: Belgium, Holland, Mexico, South Korea
GROUP F: Germany, Iran, United States, Yugoslavia
GROUP G: Colombia, England, Romania, Tunisia
GROUP H: Argentina, Croatia, Jamaica, Japan