Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, who is currently on a business trip to North America and recently toured the Rogers Centre, Toronto's retractable dome stadium, said he would build sports convention facilities including dome stadiums in Jamsil. There have been criticisms that there have been only plans and no concrete action plans, but the announcement is expected to give the business momentum.
Plans have already been made for several years to completely redevelop the current sports complex site by tying it with the area of Samsung Station. It was progressing slower than expected due to economic conditions, but this time, the Seoul Metropolitan Government officially announced the construction of a new dome stadium. Jamsil New Night Stadium has been in dispute over the location of the open type, dome stadium, and baseball stadium.
Dom Stadium can be played regardless of the climate. It provides a pleasant environment for visitors. Considering that the weather in our country is much more volatile than before due to climate change, the Dome Stadium has always been the object of thirst. At the same time, the dome stadium can create synergy with several auxiliary facilities. The Seoul Metropolitan Government's plan also shows its willingness to maximize such effects.
The dome stadium can avoid the deficit only when sufficient demand is supported due to high construction and maintenance costs. However, Seoul has been regarded as the only place that can handle it, as its own population is close to 10 million and the combined population of the metropolitan area exceeds 20 million.
The baseball community has consistently demanded that Jamsil New Stadium be built as a dome, and it seems that the Seoul Metropolitan Government has responded to these fans' demands. The question is next. Construction of the dome stadium will begin in 2026 and will be completed at the end of 2031. The construction period is longer than that of a general open baseball stadium. In addition, it is judged that a longer time is required because the surrounding development must be comprehensively considered. The problem is then, there is no alternative to where baseball is played.
Under the current plan of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, LG and Doosan, which use Jamsil Stadium as their home base, must vacate their rooms after the 2025 season. From 2026 to 2031, baseball must be played elsewhere for six seasons. In response, LG, Doosan, and KBO paid attention to the Olympic Main Stadium right next to Jamsil Baseball Stadium. It was an opinion that it would be temporarily remodeled as a 17,000-seat baseball stadium and used as a home stadium. However, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is showing a difficult attitude due to safety issues. It is difficult to ignore the word "safety" that has emerged as a hot topic these days.
If this happens, LG and Doosan will have to leave Jamsil and spend as many as six seasons elsewhere. Currently, there are not enough places in Seoul to host professional baseball. Gocheok Sky Dome is being used by Kiwoom as a home. In order for one more team to enter, large-scale construction is also required on the third base side, but there is not enough space. Mokdong Stadium, where professional baseball games were held before Gocheok Dome, has worse facilities than Jamsil. In addition, complaints about noise and light pollution continued due to the dense residential areas around it. Mokdong Stadium is currently holding a nationwide amateur competition, which needs to be considered.
However, it is also ambiguous to move on to another region. This is because there are not many baseball stadiums available for professional baseball teams in the metropolitan area, and even if they use spare space, they undermine the identity of the club's connection. LG and Doosan are already set to suffer significant losses in their import structure for six seasons. Annual admission revenue is greatly reduced, and advertising unit prices are also reduced accordingly. However, if even the baseball field lives in a wandering life, the damage becomes more severe.
While LG, Doosan, and KBO have decided to form a TF to respond, the baseball community is condemning the Seoul Metropolitan Government's one-way passage. Both Doosan and LG teams responded, "We didn't hear anything special before the announcement," and "We also knew from the article." LG and Doosan spend the longest time of the year if they build a dome stadium anyway. LG and Doosan also pay the most usage fees. Nevertheless, it is difficult to erase the feeling of being somewhat alienated.
LG and Doosan have a combined annual home crowd of 2 million. While Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop indirectly expressed, "You have to think about your fans," LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop poured out high-level criticism. Ahead of the match against KIA in Gwangju on the 19th, manager Yeom said, "The most important thing is Doosan fans and LG fans," adding, "There should be no inconvenience for our fans and Doosan fans."
Coach Yeom, who used Mokdong Stadium as his home when he was a Nexen coach, said, "There is a safety problem in the general stadium, but we should not rule out the general stadium. It's most convenient for fans to come to the side right away. The safety issue that the city talked about is also important, but that safety issue is of course a problem that the city and the club have to solve, he said. "Six years is too long." From the fans' point of view, this doesn't make sense if (the home stadium) goes to the wrong place. How uncomfortable it is it. Fans are Seoul citizens after all. We need to make sure that Seoul citizens don't experience any inconvenience," he said, stressing that remodeling the main stadium is the most suitable alternative.
So are foreign cases. New York has built a new Yankee Stadium right next to the old Yankee Stadium. When the new stadium was built, the old stadium was demolished. Tokyo, Japan, also built a new stadium, Tokyo Dome, right next to Gorakuen Stadium, which was the home to the Yomiuri Giants. When Yomiuri moved to Tokyo Dome, the old stadium was demolished. Fans of the Yankees and Yomiuri didn't have to go anywhere else. That's how memories and history of the two prestigious clubs continued.
They are fans of the two teams who growl whenever they meet as one-roof rivals, but they are against the Seoul Metropolitan Government's decision as one. In particular, it is difficult to understand to go to cats, Incheon, Suwon, or other cities. Outside the stadium, a "Jamsil fan coalition" is taking place. In fact, Jamsil has a high percentage of away teams, so the current location with good accessibility can be considered optimal. It is natural that there are concerns that going to remote places will reduce the number of spectators themselves and that the popularity of professional baseball will inevitably die. It is true that a dome stadium is necessary for the development of baseball, but baseball's popularity may cease before it is completed