'Samsung and LG lead the way!' 2026 KBO League box office explosion → surpasses 4 million spectators in just 222 games, the fewest in history

*This content was translated by AI.

The 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League is rewriting professional baseball box office history by reaching the 4th million spectator mark at the fastest pace ever.

The KBO (Korea Baseball Organization) announced on the 21st that a total of 68,838 spectators attended games at five stadiums nationwide—Jamsil, Gocheok, Daejeon, Gwangju, and Pohang—bringing the season's cumulative attendance to 4,035,771.

With this, the KBO League surpassed 4 million spectators in just 222 games, setting a new record that beats the previous all-time minimum of 230 games set in last year's (2025 season) by eight games. This means that just 14 days after surpassing 3 million spectators on May 7, the league added another 10 thousand won spectators.

Last year, the KBO League set a new all-time record with 12,312,519 spectators, ushering in the era of '10 million spectators for two consecutive years.' This season, it is boasting even stronger ticket power. From the point of surpassing 10 thousand won spectators after the opening to the current 4 million milestone, the league has maintained a dominant lead by breaking the all-time record for the fewest games in every segment. The current average attendance per game is 18,179, an increase of about 8% compared to the same period last year.

Competition among teams for box office success is also fierce. Samsung Lions took the top spot with cumulative attendance of 546,949. LG Twins closely trailed with 544,560, both surpassing the '500,000 spectators' mark. Additionally, four teams in total—Doosan Bears (493,175) and SSG Landers (409,136)—have already surpassed 400,000 spectators.

In terms of average attendance per game, LG led the league with 23,677. Following LG, Samsung (22,790), Doosan (22,417), and Lotte Giants (20,660) are all drawing an average of over 20,000 spectators per game.

Among these, the team showing the steepest growth was KT Wiz. KT recorded 334,634 spectators, a remarkable 30% increase compared to the same period last year, securing the top spot in spectator growth rate. Kiwoom Heroes also showed significant growth, recording 306,544 spectators, a 13% increase from last year.

The most significant feature of the 2026 KBO League season is the fierce 'ticket war.' Out of the total 222 games played this season, 130 games, accounting for about 59%, were sold out.

The teams with the most sold-out games were LG and Hanwha Eagles, each recording 20 sell-outs. In particular, Hanwha led this category with an incredible seat occupancy rate of 99.8%, while LG followed closely behind with 99.7%. Samsung (99.0%) and Doosan (94.4%) also reached a level where it is virtually impossible to find empty seats whenever home games are held.

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*This content was translated by AI.