Three Venues Including Goyang Sports Complex to Be Upgraded as Pop Music Concert Halls... Up to 2 Billion Won in State Funding Each

Additional Three Non-Metropolitan Venues to Be Selected in New Round of Applications This Month

Overview of Goyang Sports Complex. Provided by Goyang Special City

The government will upgrade three existing facilities into pop music concert halls: one large-scale venue in the Seoul metropolitan area and two small-to-medium-sized venues outside the metropolitan area. Each facility will be eligible for up to 2 billion won in state funding. Because only two venues outside the metropolitan area have been selected—falling short of the original goal of five—another round of applications will be launched this month.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced on September 9 that, together with the Korea Creative Content Agency, Goyang Sports Complex in Gyeonggi Province, the Main Theater of Busan Citizens' Hall, and Chiak Gymnasium in Wonju, Gangwon Province, were chosen as recipients of the "Pop Music Concert Environment Improvement Project."

Launched for the first time this year, this project aims to repurpose existing multi-purpose and sports facilities for pop music concerts, as constructing new, large-scale venues takes a long time. Facilities with at least 1,000 seats are eligible, and local governments must cover at least 50% of the project cost.

The ministry divided the country into six regions, planning to support one large-scale facility with more than 30,000 seats in the metropolitan area and five small-to-medium-sized facilities with fewer than 30,000 seats outside the metropolitan area. From June 23 to July 24, six local governments across four regions (the metropolitan area, Gyeongsang, Jeolla, and Gangwon) applied. After three rounds of evaluations—including document review, presentations, and on-site assessments—three venues were ultimately selected.

Goyang Sports Complex, designated as the metropolitan area's large-scale venue, has a capacity of 43,000 seats. The Main Theater of Busan Citizens' Hall (1,624 seats) and Chiak Gymnasium in Wonju (2,330 seats) were selected as small-to-medium-sized venues outside the metropolitan area.

Since only two out of the targeted five venues outside the metropolitan area were selected, an additional application round will be held this month, using the remaining budget. The application requirements will also be relaxed. Previously, facilities that had received support under the "Public Sports Facility Renovation Support Project" were ineligible to apply, but moving forward, even such facilities may participate if they plan to improve different equipment or amenities.

The regional distinctions will also be removed. Applications will be accepted from all non-metropolitan areas, and extra points will be awarded to venues in Jeolla, Chungcheong, and Jeju regions, as no venues from these regions were selected in this round. Further details will be announced on the Korea Creative Content Agency’s website on September 14, and the final support facilities will be chosen in October.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism plans to utilize this project to strengthen the concert capabilities of existing facilities and expand the foundation for pop music performances in various regions.

Choi Sunghee, Content Industry Policy Director at the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, "We expect this project will help reinforce the underdeveloped performance infrastructure and provide local residents with greater access to K-pop concerts."

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