“Honestly, women don’t have a chance to step on green grass. Maybe that’s why the moment you step on the grass, in less than 0.1 second, everyone brightens up as if they were back in middle school and high school. It is a moment when you become 30 to 40 years younger. “From warming up to handling the ball, I’m learning like a kindergartener, but it’s a time I look forward to every time.”
Lee Joo-yeon, CEO of FC The Joy Plus (59), became fascinated with soccer after being invited to participate in the 2022 Korea University 1980 College Soccer League. He gathered his acquaintances and asked Coach Byun Byeon-guk (61), a former member of the Korea University soccer team who was attending at the time, for guidance, and founded a team in February of last year and has been playing on the green field every week.
“The pot-bellied man also had fun kicking the ball as if he had forgotten his age, with his gray hair flowing. The women also came out wearing identical uniforms and cheered. We also run together… . I was envious of the culture that came together with just one ball. So, I gathered friends and acquaintances, mainly alumni of Ewha Womans University, over the phone. At first, only 10 people gathered. But now there are 35 people.”
![“The moment you step on the green ground to kick the ball, you become a girl in less than 0.1 second.”[양종구의 100세 시대 건강법]](https://dimg.donga.com/wps/NEWS/IMAGE/2024/10/12/130198557.1.jpg "“The moment you step on the green ground to kick the ball, you become a girl in less than 0.1 second.”[양종구의 100세 시대 건강법]")
Representative Lee said, “It is a gathering of people with no athletic ability.” Representative Lee is an English instructor and senior model, and most of the people who do not know sports, such as senior models, musical actors, artists, and office workers, are experiencing soccer for the first time. I learned the basics step by step under the guidance of coach Byun, who played in the corporate soccer team Hallelujah and then worked his way up the path of a youth soccer coach. At first, I couldn’t even think of dribbling, trapping, or shooting. Still, I was happy just chasing the ball.
I received training to improve my basic physical strength to play soccer, including stretching exercises, running, balance, and stepping, and to become familiar with the ball. It hasn’t been long since I practiced dribbling, trapping, passing, and even kicking properly. Representative Lee said, “It was only after trying it that I realized how difficult soccer is. “Stamina and technique are basic, and I’m still confused because I have to understand not only my team’s movements but also the opposing team’s movements,” he said. Still, the effect of training was visible. He said, “My clothes get wet in the light rain…” . I can really feel my skills improving little by little. Now, the game can be played for 10 minutes in each half. “It’s still difficult to play 20 minutes in each half, but I think 20-minute games will be possible soon.”
I played a practice game with the Korea University women’s team, and I also play a practice game with Sookmyung Women’s University ROTC students when they train at Junggyeong High School in Seoul twice a month. I have already been to overseas away games.
“I heard that Japanese lifestyle sports are active, so I wanted to exchange. So, I looked into it and found out about a Japanese organization that does a lot of Korea-Japan exchanges, and after talking to a person who came as a Korean correspondent over the phone, I ended up going on a field trip in person. In May, we went to Yaizu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan and had joint training and a friendly match with the Japanese amateur team ‘Bastars’. “On October 13th, Bastards will visit Korea to play.”
Representative Lee invited three more Korean teams and expanded it to a total of five teams holding the first Korea-Japan Friendly Senior Soccer Tournament at the University of Seoul stadium. His goal is to draw social attention to the health of elderly women through FC The Joy Plus. In 2017, CEO Lee gathered his friends and created The Joy Plus, a social enterprise that helps the underprivileged through plays and reading. With talent donations from members, we have run senior model academies, musicals, choirs, and reading programs for grandparents, and have even created a soccer team, seeking to expand the health of senior women.
“Modeling, musicals, etc. were so hard and difficult that it was easy to end them as a one-time thing, but after being introduced to soccer, which can be enjoyed regardless of age, I created a soccer team. Soccer is highly sustainable once you start it. Once you get into it, you can’t get out. Playing soccer improves not only my physical health but also my mental health. It’s a great exercise to get together, kick a ball, chat, and eat together. And I don’t think it’s a bad thing to grow older together while playing soccer like this. Understanding each other… .”
It claims to be a senior soccer team, so the average age is 55, but members in their 20s and 30s also participate. Anyone accepts it. If there are too many members, we plan to disperse the teams and operate them. We plan to continue donating talent through soccer. Members work in a variety of fields, including models, pianists, vocalists, textile artists, and architects.
FC The Joy Plus held a talent donation event by holding a friendly match against the Sri Lankan team that participated in the ‘2024 HOPE CUP’ at Junggyeong High School on September 28. In the morning, coach Byun Byung-guk held a soccer class, and in the afternoon, he held a music class and a dream coaching class. Representative Lee said, “We held the game to support the Sri Lankan team playing soccer in difficult circumstances. “Although it is small, we also delivered a gift,” he said. “FC The Joy Plus’ ideal is ‘sharing.’ “I want to help create a world without difficulties,” he explained.
The Hope Cup, held from October 10th to 12th, is hosted by the international relief and development NGO Hope Friends Korea Food for the Hungry. Under the theme of ‘Our hopes become reality,’ 160 child athletes from 10 countries, including Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Myanmar, gathered in Korea to strengthen friendship through soccer balls. For 35 years since 1989, Korea Food for the Hungry has been carrying out various international development cooperation projects to help communities and children around the world become self-reliant.
Representative Lee said that after starting to play soccer, the topic of conversation naturally became soccer when eating or drinking tea.
“Actually, when men meet, they talk about the military and sports. Women rarely talk about sports. But when our members meet, they start the conversation by talking about soccer. Director Byun Byeon-guk is really amused when he sees us like this. When you watch TV at home, you naturally see soccer broadcasts. Even when I go to a restaurant, they ask me to play soccer. Now that I look at it, I feel a bit unfair. Soccer was considered to be only for men. Women could have done it from a young age too… . Anyway, I’m happy that I’m playing soccer right now.”
Was there any influence from the women’s soccer program ‘Goal Hitters’ aired on SBS in the background of the founding of FC The Joy Plus?
“Well, I couldn’t even imagine it in the past. When I look at female soccer players, I wonder why they play soccer. But these days, I play a lot of soccer. There may have been an influence from ‘Goal Girl’. “It wasn’t founded because of ‘Goal Hit Girl,’ but I think it caught on to that atmosphere to some extent.”
When CEO Lee started playing soccer, he also developed the habit of exercising every day. Representative Lee said, “Coach Byun told me to exercise whenever I have time, as I couldn’t build my physical strength just by playing soccer once a week, and showed me how to use the exercise equipment at the neighborhood park. When I looked around the park near my house, I saw that it was well equipped with exercise equipment. So, I run to the park every morning and do various exercises.” He said, “Now, if I stop playing soccer for even a week, my body gets itchy. “I will be kicking balls with the members for the rest of my life,” he said with a smile.
“I took a break this year because it was so hot, and my body felt tingly. So now, no matter how hot or cold it is, we play soccer as scheduled. Whether it rains or snows, we play. That’s the beauty of soccer again.”