FC Bayern Community Exploration for 2026 World Cup
Sat, 20/06/26, 16:53
Episode 3: Korean Identity in Los Angeles
FC Bayern’s “Community Exploration” journeys into immigrant and diaspora communities across North America connected by football, heritage, and belonging. Guided by the club’s players, we trace how football connects to culture, family, and the places people call home.
In this episode, the journey continues in Los Angeles, home to one of North America’s most recognizable Korean communities. Through Ray Rose of RRose from Concrete, along with Anne Hong and her son, James Hong, of Flower World & Wedding Shop, the episode explores how Korean identity is carried through family, work, creativity, football, and the memories that continue to shape each generation.
Ray Rose's sense of identity is reflected in his brand "R Rose from Concrete", in which Korean symbolism, football and his immigration background come together.
For Ray, Koreatown became a home away from home. After moving from Seoul to Queens, then Virginia, and eventually Los Angeles, he found in Koreatown a place where he did not feel like an outsider or have to explainwhy he belonged. That sense of identity runs through his brand, R Rose from Concrete, where Korean iconography, football, and his immigrant journey come together. Much of that story is rooted in his mother, whose sacrifices as a single parent continue to inspire the work he creates today.
Anne’s story brings another layer through flowers, family, and the persistence of building a life in America. What began with small events from home eventually became The Floral Boutique, a business shaped by patience, hard work, and the desire to support her son, James. Her flower shop became both a livelihood and a creative expression, reflecting the immigrant reality of working tirelessly while holding family close. Football connects these stories to something larger.
Anne Hong and her son James Hong in the 'Flower World & Wedding Shop': Her flower shop became both her livelihood and a means of creative expression that reflects the reality of immigrants - working tirelessly while keeping her family close by.
For Ray, the 2002 World Cup was a defining moment of Korean pride, one that helped him feel proud of his identity even while growing up in America. Today, seeing Korean players like Kim Min-jae on the global stage carries that feeling forward, showing a new generation what is possible.
Together, Ray, Anne, and James reflect the pride of a Korean community deeply connected to its identity. In Koreatown, that identity lives in the food, the language, the businesses, the memories, and the shared feeling of seeing Korea represented on the world stage.
Watch Episode 2 here:
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