“Cheongra Dome → Jamsil Dome → Will a Dream 50,000-Seat Dome Stadium Rise?”... Without This One “Thing,” It Will Ultimately Become a “White Elephant” [Lee Jong-seong’s Sports Culture & Industry]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Competition among local governments to select a site for building a K-pop dome stadium is intensifying. This dome stadium boom among local governments began as the government pushed forward with the construction of multi-purpose dome stadiums capable of hosting both sports events and large-scale concerts.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism is promoting the construction of a large-scale dome stadium with a capacity of up to 50,000 spectators and medium-sized dome stadiums that can accommodate 20,000 to 40,000 spectators to address the shortage of large K-pop venues.

However, in many cases, the plans for building K-pop dome stadiums put forward by local governments currently lack a “home team.” As a result, concerns have been raised that newly constructed dome stadiums could end up as “white elephants” that incur only massive maintenance costs.

In fact, the majority of local governments expected to participate in the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s public solicitation for candidate sites for the “Sports and Concert Complex Dome Stadium Construction Project” have yet to present a concrete blueprint for how they will utilize the stadium through sports events.

Plans have even emerged that vaguely propose building a 50,000-seat dome stadium to seek the establishment of a professional baseball team, which is currently on a wave of popularity.

At least, Suwon and Busan are the only places where there is a possibility that new dome stadiums will become home grounds for professional baseball teams. Suwon plans to demolish KT Wiz Park, currently used by the professional baseball team KT Wiz, and build a new dome stadium on an idle site within the Suwon Comprehensive Sports Complex grounds.

Unlike Suwon, the situation in Busan is somewhat complex. Busan intends to simultaneously push forward with the construction of a North Port Dome Stadium and the reconstruction of Sajik Baseball Stadium. However, finding a mutual benefit plan for the two stadiums is not easy. The reconstruction of Sajik Baseball Stadium is expected to be carried out with funding from secured national funds along with contributions from Busan City and the Lotte Giants.

Under current circumstances, it is highly likely that the home ground for the Lotte Giants will be the newly established Sajik Baseball Stadium. If this happens, the North Port Dome Stadium will face the difficulty of having to utilize the stadium primarily for large-scale K-pop concerts due to the lack of a “home team.”

Daegu, which is promoting the construction of a medium-sized dome stadium, plans to make this stadium the home ground for the professional basketball team Daegu Korean Gas Corporation. However, it remains uncertain whether Daegu Korean Gas Corporation, which recorded an average attendance of 2,395 spectators last season, will be able to effectively utilize a new stadium capable of accommodating more than 20,000 spectators.

Stadiums that can host large-scale concerts but operate without a home team find it difficult to turn a profit. The Singapore National Stadium, opened in 2014 through public-private cooperation, is a representative example. This stadium hosted sports events such as football international matches and rugby, centered on large-scale concerts by pop stars like BTS and Coldplay.

However, due to sustained deficits, the Singapore Sports Council had no choice but to take over the ownership and operating rights of the stadium in 2022. This was because revenue from sports events held at the stadium was not stable, and concert revenue fell short of expectations.

Although the financial situation of the Singapore National Stadium improved after the Sports Council, a government institutional investor, acquired the operating rights, the absence of a home team that uses the stadium on a fixed basis remains a significant burden for stadium operations.

The case of the Tokyo National Stadium (now MUFG Stadium), which served as the main stadium for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, was similar. After the Olympics, the Tokyo National Stadium could not frequently host sports events because it lacked a J-League home team.

As its financial situation deteriorated, the Japanese government had to transfer the operating rights of the stadium to a private enterprise consortium in 2024. The consortium sold the naming rights for the stadium to Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) in 2025. The financial situation of the Tokyo National Stadium improved through a naming rights contract worth 10 billion yen (approximately 85.1 billion won) over five years.

The J-League, which participated in the private consortium, began hosting some league matches at the Tokyo National Stadium. The J-League plans to hold 18 matches at the Tokyo National Stadium in the 2026-2027 season as well. Although there is no home team, the stadium’s utilization rate has been stably increased through the hosting of league matches. One reason the consortium was able to sell the naming rights for the Tokyo National Stadium for a large sum was also the hosting of J-League matches.

The push by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and local governments to establish dome stadiums is focused on K-pop rather than sports. This is due to expectations that large-scale concerts can create a revenue structure for the dome stadiums.

However, it is not easy for dome stadiums to turn a profit through large-scale concerts alone. This is because two dome stadiums (Jamsil Dome Stadium and Cheongra Dome Stadium) are already scheduled to be built in Seoul and Incheon’s Cheongra area. Additionally, Seoul Arena (Changdong, Dobong-gu), the country’s first arena dedicated to popular music, is also scheduled to be completed in 2027.

If two additional government-led K-pop dome stadiums are added, competition among these venues for concert hosting could become fierce. This means that, depending on the situation, concert revenue may fall below expectations.

The National Sports Promotion Fund is used for the government-led K-pop dome stadium construction project. To align with the purpose of utilizing the National Sports Promotion Fund, dome stadiums must faithfully fulfill their role as sports venues.

For dome stadiums to secure stable revenue, the role of sports, particularly a home team, is important. Even without a home team, K-pop dome stadiums must establish a structure where sports events can be held on a fixed basis, rather than one-off sports events like those at the Tokyo National Stadium. This is because the economic viability of dome stadiums cannot be guaranteed solely by large-scale concert revenue centered on the K-pop boom.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.View Original