A day earlier President Kim Dae-jung, who is in the last year of his single five-year presidential term, had expressed concern about a lack of World Cup enthusiasm, calling for concerted efforts to ensure the event is a success.

South Korea took his words to heart on Wednesday and despite tight security in Seoul for visiting U.S. President George W. Bush, organisers in the capital and South Korea's nine other host cities held festivities.

South Korea, like co-host Japan, held parades, cultural performances and concerts to boost football fever ahead of the biggest finals in sport.

'Korean people are very interested in the World Cup games,' Chung Mong-joon, South Korea's top soccer official, said after Nike unveiled its ultra-light 'Cool Motion' jersey the national team will wear for the matches.

'They are not good at the moment in letting it out,' Chung said. 'But things will improve dramatically from now, with many events, such as friendly matches, lined up.'

Fireworks were launched on Wednesday as a giant lamp shaped like a soccer ball was lit in front of Seoul's City Hall as a crowd of about 1,000 cheered.

YTN television, a Korean news channel, even spared time to show life-like computer-simulated matches between South Korea and its rivals in group D - Poland, the United States and Portugal. South Korea's scores were less than impressive, rather like the real team, who may struggle to reach the second round.

The events were held as security forces were on alert in Seoul to discourage protests during a visit by Bush, who discussed the World Cup with Kim, although the prime focus was North Korea.

'We exchanged views about the World Cup issue and there were good opinions about cooperation,' Kim told a joint news conference.

He did not elaborate, but the remark was seen as a reference to some 37,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea, who are expected to help support security operations during the May 31-June 30 event. The U.S. team is among 32 taking part.

Chung, also a FIFA vice president and the head of the Korea Football Association, presented both presidents with navy blue World Cup jackets with hoods and with their names on the back, during an evening reception for Bush.

POOR PERFORMANCE

While some critics say organisers have not done enough to fan the flames of World Cup fever, they said the task was complicated by the national team's recent weak performances.

'South Korea's poor performances in recent friendly matches and scepticism about the team joining the 16 finalists (reaching the second stage) are also to blame,' said Shin Moon-sun, a soccer TV commentator.

Failure to capitalise on scoring chances meant a disappointing fourth place finish in the CONCACAF Gold Cup in California in early February, where Korea managed only three goals in five games.

Last week they lost 2-1 in a friendly match against Uruguay.

Japan, meanwhile, has plenty to fret about as the World Cup's 100-day countdown begins.

At the stadium in this central Japanese city, though, such worries were nowhere in sight as school children gathered on the pitch to form the number '100' in a cheerful salute to the occasion.

Fukuroi City in Shizuoka is one of 10 Japanese venues for the World Cup finals, being jointly hosted by South Korea and Japan.

'Adults consider events like the World Cup just one of many, but for children, if they take part, the memory will stay their whole life,' Fukuroi Mayor Hideyuki Harada told Reuters.

The celebration - which also featured the children forming four foreign flags with coloured paper in honour of the teams that will play at the stadium - was one of a handful of low-key events in Japan to mark the 100-day countdown.

Japanese organisers acknowledged there was much to do in the time left before the finals start on May 31.

'We know we still have a mountain of work to do, all across the board, just as they do in South Korea,' the Japanese World Cup Organising Committee's (JAWOC) public relations manager, Hisao Shuto, said this week.

'We are not counting our chickens yet.'

JAWOC secretary general Yasuhiko Endo, however, said he was confident in Japan's security plans, which were beefed up after the September 11 attacks in the United States.

BUDGET BOOST

JAWOC boosted its security budget by 25 percent to $18.5 million after the attacks, promised airport-style checks at the stadia and will mobilise a security force of about 700 stewards at every match.

'I am concerned, but I do not believe that any misfortune will occur,' Endo told the Asahi Shimbun newspaper.

Japanese police say they are adopting a policy of zero tolerance towards potential trouble-makers at matches and are working with overseas authorities to prevent known hooligans from entering the country before or during the World Cup.

Squads of armed anti-hooligan police and security forces have been undergoing intensive training for months to avoid a repeat of the violence involving English fans at the 1998 World Cup in France and the 2000 European championship in Belgium.

About 800 known hooligans will be banned from leaving Britain during the World Cup and up to 700 police will be operating at England's Group F matches in Japan.

'The venues where England will play are safe, but it seems that some shopkeepers are scared and are thinking of shutting their shops,' Endo told the Asahi newspaper. 'I am trying to reassure them it will be OK.'

PITCH PROBLEMS

JAWOC's Endo also said the pitch at Saitama Stadium 2002, which was heavily criticised by Italian players after a November friendly, would be in good shape in time for the tournament.

'We will watch the results of J-League matches in March and then decide whether the pitch should be completely or partially re-laid,' Endo told Sankei Shimbun newspaper.

'Either way, it will be ready in time.'

In November, a FIFA inspection team gave a thumbs-up to Japan's World Cup venues, but raised some concerns about the playing surfaces.

Italy defender Fabio Cannavaro had compared playing on Saitama's pitch, which cut up badly with large divots during the November 7 friendly against Japan, to 'playing beach soccer'.

JAWOC is struggling to make sure finances for the World Cup don't fall into the red, a task made tougher by Japan's slip into its third recession in a decade.

'We are struggling to get donations,' Endo told Sankei newspaper, adding JAWOC had planned on getting about 4 billion yen but had only received about 700 million so far.

ROYAL VISIT?

Organisers in South Korea and Japan are trying to keep often-testy diplomatic ties from overshadowing the World Cup.

As a possible gesture of goodwill, Prince Takamado, a cousin of the emperor, might make an official visit to South Korea to attend the World Cup opening ceremony, Japanese government sources said on Wednesday.