The geopolitical aspect even took center stage with the appearance of South Korean pop star Jung Kook who seemed to dominate the interest in the opening ceremony of the great event. Jung Kook, 25, is more than just a handsome boy with world-class fans and great wealth. It also has an expensive sponsorship deal with South Korean carmaker Hyundai-Kia, which is also a FIFA sponsor. This type of relationship is not casual or purely business related. Over the years, the South Korean government has implemented strategies to build and create its "soft power". These countries are developing relationships with their audiences around the world. Not only from football, music and cars - it's also from movies like Parasite that won an Oscar for popular TV series like Squid Games. South Korea isn't the only one benefiting from FIFA's audience. Although the sellers of soft drinks and burgers are still on the list of sponsors of the World Football Organization, many of FIFA's partners are large companies and countries that are determined to extend their reach through the popularity of football. Qatar Airways, which is the airline partner of FIFA, for example, does not sell airline tickets. Qatar's public transport has also played an important role in the country's efforts to make Hamad Airport one of the world's leading airports. The award-winning airline is an effective tool of soft power to convey to a global audience what Qatar is and wants to be. In turn, Qatar Airways and Qatar sponsoring the 2022 World Cup show how the country wants to tell the world what it is - that it is a legitimate, reliable and important part of the world. The same goes for China, although sports and industrial production have come to a standstill since the pandemic. Four of the sponsors of the World Cup - from electronics (Hisense), appliances (Vivo), milk (Mengiu) and everything from real estate to media (Wanda) - are from China. This list is important for a country that hopes to one day host such a great event and spread its influence around the world. Al Jazeera reported that although China did not qualify, the Bamboo Curtain Country Company became the main sponsor of the project. It was written that an amount of 1.395 billion dollars or 27 billion rupees was given by Chinese companies in the program. "Distributed annually, Chinese sponsors amount to $207 million per year, compared to contracts with Qatar and the United States of $134 million and $129 respectively," according to data shown by and London-based data analysis and consulting firm, Global Data. (Chadwick, 2022)
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