IU held a concert at Seoul World Cup Stadium on September 21st and 22nd. [사진출처 = 인스타그램]
Amid controversy over the condition of the grass at Seoul World Cup Stadium, the third match of the 2026 North & Central America World Cup Asian regional qualifier against Iraq in October was to be held at Yongin Mir Stadium. It was revealed that the stadium earned 8.2 billion won from games and concerts this year, but only invested 250 million won in grass maintenance.
According to data received by Democratic Party of Korea member Wi Seong-gon (Seogwipo, Jeju) from the Seoul Facilities Corporation on the 25th, the total amount spent by the corporation on grass maintenance at Seoul World Cup Stadium as of the end of August this year is 253.27 million won.
The cost of newly planted grass is 153.46 million won, artificial mats for grass protection are 19.94 million won, pesticides and fertilizers are 51.4 million won, overseeding machines for grass seeding are 19.62 million won, and grass waste disposal services are 8.86 million won.
The proportion is considerably small compared to the total revenue of 8.255 billion won that Seoul World Cup Stadium earned from hosting soccer matches and celebrity concerts and the corresponding parking fees from January to August of this year.
Seoul World Cup Stadium earned 994.26 million won from national team A-matches, 1.13832 billion won from FC Seoul matches, 2.43447 billion won from cultural events such as concerts, and 3.63846 billion won from general events.
The revenue from the rental of major cultural events was 1.43899 billion won for Lim Young-woong’s concert and 977.58 million won for Seventeen.
This amount does not include the IU concert held on the 21st and 22nd. It is expected that the proceeds from the IU concert will amount to at least 1 billion won.
This is because World Cup stadiums charge 8% of admission fees for soccer games, concerts, and public events in addition to a daily usage fee. General events receive 15% of admission revenue.
Before and after IU’s concert, soccer fans criticized the grass for being damaged by setting up a stage and laying down chairs on the grass, and singer fans fought back, saying that since they paid for it, responsibility should not be passed on to the singer, creating a rare situation of conflict. Amid the controversy, as the seriousness of the grass problem at the World Cup Stadium continued to be pointed out, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that starting next year, it will allow concerts and other cultural events to be rented out on the condition that “ground seat sales are excluded,” and that it will also strengthen grass management after IU’s concert.
As the controversy continued, the Korea Football Association decided to hold the match against Iraq on October 15 at Yongin Mir Stadium instead of Seoul World Cup Stadium.
The reason is that even if the grass is repaired after checking the condition of the World Cup stadium, it will be difficult to play the game on October 15th considering the growth status, etc.
Rep. Wi Seong-gon said, “Seoul City announced the exclusion of ground seat sales ahead of IU’s concert, which made it seem as if the singer was responsible for damaging the grass, and this has fueled the conflict among fans,” adding, “There were also problems with last year’s Jamboree concert, so fundamental measures must be taken.”
