Controversy over the ‘Jamboree’s hasty administration’ sparked sparks in the soccer world, and only the second and third victims are being mass-produced. This time, it is FC Seoul and the Seoul Facilities Management Corporation.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that the 2023 World Scout Jamboree K-Pop Concert and Closing Ceremony will be held at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on the 11th.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism changed the venue of the event twice, causing losses to the clubs participating in the Korea Football Association (FA) Cup and K League 1. It was originally planned to be held on the special outdoor stage in Saemangeum on the 6th, but it was decided to move to the Jeonju World Cup Stadium on the 11th. Due to preparations for the event, the FA Cup semi-final match between Jeonbuk Hyundai and Incheon United scheduled at Jeonju World Cup Stadium on the 9th was canceled. Then, due to the variable of Typhoon ‘Kanun’, the Jamboree Organizing Committee decided to open it again at the Seoul World Cup Stadium in one day.

Although Seoul does not have home games on weekends, the soccer team and the Seoul Facilities Management Corporation, which have worked hard for a long time to manage the ‘1 billion won hybrid lawn’, are in tears.

In October 2021, a new hybrid lawn was laid with a mixture of 95% natural grass and 5% artificial grass. The grass pitting phenomenon has been reduced, and the drainage system has also been transformed into an excellent ground. It is famous for investing a budget of 1 billion won.

After that, the Facility Management Corporation had a strong will to keep the grass in the Seoul World Cup Stadium, the ‘soccer sanctuary’ where the top league of Korean professional football and A matches take place, to the highest level even in peacetime. In order to prevent damage to the lawn, large-scale concerts, which would be a huge source of income, were not accepted. Although a large-scale religious event was held recently, the stage was set up in E seat with variable seats. The event was conducted in a way that did not damage the grass.

However, it is known that the Jamboree event prepares a structure to breathe with the audience by not only installing the stage near the S-seok goalpost, but also setting up a protruding stage. It is a structure where the stage extends to the ground area. It is said that it will fill the audience by laying pads to protect the grass around it, but damage to the lawn is obvious.안전놀이터

Minister of Public Administration and Security Lee Sang-min also acknowledged at the Jamboree emergency evacuation briefing on the 9th that “there is a possibility of damaging the stadium lawn” and “we are looking for ways to minimize it. I understand that the place has been changed after various consultations with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism,” he emphasized.

Anyone can see that the domestic professional football world is looking for a ‘sacrifice’ for the government’s urgent follow-up measures for the Jamboree. One senior soccer player said, “This incident represents the level of government awareness about the social value that sports provide beyond soccer. Isn’t it ‘so much football’ for them?” he lamented. He said, “This behavior in which soccer, the representative professional sport in Korea, is stumbling under the influence of the government stems from the fact that the facility management corporation is the operator of the stadium. It is necessary to change to a system in which the club holds the right to operate the stadium through consultations that suit the conditions, whether it is a long-term lease or not.”