By Hatem Maher and Leonardo Benassatto
LOS ANGELES, June 24 (Reuters) - Clad almost entirely in red and draped in South Korean flags, hundreds of Korean Americans transformed Liberty Park in Los Angeles' Koreatown into a slice of home on Wednesday, chanting, singing and dancing under the banner of a simple slogan: "Keeping Our Roots Eternal."
The phrase adorned flags, food stalls and merchandise across the park, capturing the spirit of a World Cup watch party that became about far more than the outcome
of South Korea's final group-stage match against South Africa.
While the action unfolded more than 1,400 miles (2,250 km) away in Monterrey, Mexico, Liberty Park briefly felt much closer to Seoul than Southern California.
Families queued for Korean street food and face painting before kickoff as performers took to the stage. Drummers pounded in perfect rhythm with cheerleaders while supporters broke into chants that echoed across the park.
Even when South Korea conceded a second-half goal on their way to a 1-0 defeat, the noisy atmosphere barely wavered.
During the hydration break, cheerleaders rushed back onto the stage, leading fans through energetic routines to Psy's "Gangnam Style" and music from the hit animated film "KPop Demon Hunters", quickly replacing disappointment with celebration.
For many gathered in Koreatown, the day was less about football than about reaffirming ties to a heritage thousands of miles away.
'BRINGING OUR COMMUNITY TOGETHER'
"I love Korea. I love representing my heritage," said Irene Choi, who was born in Los Angeles and whose mother runs a ballet school in the city's Korean community.
"I wish I was in Korea and I could experience it there. I never have. But this comes second. Every single World Cup viewing party in K-Town is always so much fun. It brings our community together."
Mitchell Lee, a nonprofit worker from Maryland who was visiting Los Angeles with relatives for a family wedding, said attending the gathering was never in doubt.
"Koreatown just has such a vibe," he said. "We had to come."
Born and raised in the U.S., Lee said football remains one of the strongest connections his family have to their roots.
"We love cheering together as one community," he said.
Others admitted they were drawn less by the sport itself than by the shared experience.
"I'm not really a soccer fan," said Donnie, a registered nurse who has lived in Los Angeles since childhood.
"But the World Cup kind of always brings out a little bit of national pride. It's more fun to watch when a crowd is screaming and enjoying it instead of just watching it at home by myself."
While many fans were too young to remember South Korea's run to the World Cup semi-finals in 2002 when the country co-hosted the tournament with Japan or were born in the United States, the public gathering offered something different: an opportunity to celebrate a shared identity with strangers who felt like family.
As the final whistle confirmed defeat, leaving South Korea hoping to reach the knockout stage as one of the best third-placed teams, the drums continued to beat and fans lingered in Liberty Park, chatting beneath fluttering Korean flags.
For one afternoon in Los Angeles, the crowd embraced the feeling the slogan promised: keeping their roots eternal.
(Reporting by Hatem Maher, Editing by Ken Ferris)
