Images courtesy of GettySome fans may recall one player’s controversial transfer from Elland Road to Old Trafford in the early years of the century as Leeds United prepares to face Manchester United this weekend.
Alan Smith of Leeds United crossed the Pennines to Manchester United, the club’s bitter rivals, little aware that it would cause a linguistic phenomenon thousands of miles away in South Korea, which still persists today.
Smith’s performances at Old Trafford, where the homegrown striker had been a local hero, never exceeded those of his previous club, where his three years there had been.
However, Smith’s disgrace in South Korea effectively signifies one’s highest point or the most important time in their lives.
Footballing “heartbreak”
Josh Wileman, who was Leeds United’s South Korean supporter group contact, says, “Most people there don’t know the etymology of it, so I find myself explaining it.”
Before moving to South Korea last month, Mr. Wileman, who was originally from Hemsworth in West Yorkshire, relocated 5,000 miles away and worked as an English teacher there for the majority of his eight years.
Smith’s trans-Pennine transfer, according to him, was his first footballing “heartbreak” when he was 12 years old.
Mr. Wileman laughs, “It wasn’t nice to be reminded of that, I suppose, when I first heard the phrase.”
It was my first year working there. Before I went, I hadn’t heard it.
“The first person I worked with was a former player from Barnsley, and he was the one who explained it to me.” “
Richard Heathcote/Images courtesy of GettyThe ideal conditions for the phrase to become popular were South Korea’s growing interest in English football and the internet.
Dr. Ciue Xu, a lecturer in Korean at the University of Leeds, says that initially it was just used by football fans but eventually it gained more and more popularity.
Over time, she adds, “Leeds days” have “evolved.”
The term “a bygone era” was originally intended, but it is now used to refer to someone’s youth or peak period.
Josh WilemanAccording to Dr. Xu, the “days” portion of the phrase has been dropped by the younger generation, with simply “Leeds” being used more recently.
However, Kim Hyung Joon and his wife Yun Seung Pang’s new Korean restaurant in Leeds’s heart uses the phrase in its entirety.
Joon, 54, who relocated from Korea to the UK in 2001, admits, “I didn’t know the origins at first.” Then, it sort of clicked when I looked into it. “
He explains that around 15 or 20 years ago, I first started to see celebrities posting pictures of themselves in their “Leeds days” or in their youth on social media.
“It is a term that the Korean people are familiar with, but they are not really recognized outside of Korea.”
Kim Hyung JoonOne of his own students, according to Mr. Wileman, who co-hosts a podcast about South Korean culture for those who have immigrated there, was even called Leeds.
A dermatology clinic and a bar named after the city, which he witnessed hosting about a dozen Leeds United supporters for a promotion party a few years ago, have also been found.
However, Mr. Wileman claims it was “quite a posh little expensive whisky bar, which wasn’t the best set-up for a dozen people to watch a football game.” It wasn’t a “quite a posh little expensive whisky bar, which wasn’t the best set-up for a dozen people.
Images courtesy of GettyDue to Smith’s much-criticized move, the 33-year-old (who is 35 in South Korea) quickly learned to enjoy it as a reminder of home.
He goes on to say, “Look at this, we’re famous,” and take a picture and send it to everyone.
