K-League Away Matches Meet Regional Tourism... 'Trip Day' Program Expands Nationwide

Korea Tourism Organization and K-League Launch Tailored Travel Packages for Regional Matches
Connecting Local Attractions in Busan, Pohang, Jeonju, and More

A travel package combining K-League away match support and regional tourism will be expanded to games held outside of the Seoul metropolitan area. This sports tourism initiative aims to link the demand among soccer fans to watch matches not just to same-day visits, but to local spending and overnight stays within host regions.

In May, fans of FC Seoul and Incheon United participating in the trial 'K-League Trip Day' event are posing for a commemorative photo while holding cheer towels inside the dedicated train traveling to Daejeon. Photo by Korea Tourism Organization

On July 21, the Korea Tourism Organization announced that, in partnership with the K-League, it will run the 'K-League Trip Day' program for the second half of this year and begin recruiting participants. The program will offer tailored travel packages that combine match tickets with regional tourism programs for home games of K League 1 and 2 clubs whose local bases are outside the Seoul metropolitan area.

The Trip Day program was first piloted for several matches in May. At that time, about 150 fans of FC Seoul and Incheon United took a dedicated train to visit Daejeon, watch the match, and participate in a 'bakery pilgrimage' touring local bakeries. Based on this positive response, the Korea Tourism Organization has decided to expand the initiative to cover matches throughout the country.

The second half of the year’s packages will begin with the K League 2 match between Busan IPark and Suwon Samsung Bluewings on July 25 and continue on a weekly basis. For each home game of the regional clubs leading up to the final round, the organization will offer same-day and 1-night, 2-day stay packages, with up to 100 participants recruited per match.

Each package includes not only match tickets but also visits to local restaurants, tourist attractions, and hands-on experience programs. For example, the Pohang Steelers package incorporates a visit to the Gyeongsangbuk-do Arboretum, while the Jeonbuk Hyundai package offers an experience at Wansan Bunker in Jeonju. By highlighting unique features of each region, the program seeks to expand soccer fan travel into broader regional tourism consumption.

The Korea Tourism Organization noted that while the number of people traveling to other regions to watch sports events continues to grow, there are still few products connecting this demand to extended, stay-type tourism. The organization plans to further broaden cooperation between regional clubs and the tourism sector to expand packages combing tourism and accommodation before and after matches.

Kang Yooyoung, Head of the Regional Tourism Development Team at the Korea Tourism Organization, said, “We will increase support to transform sports fans’ regional travel demand into tourism that encourages longer stays.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.