BTS Concerts Highlight Widespread Issues in Busan's Event Management

BTS played two sold-out concerts at Busan Asiad Main Stadium on Friday and Saturday, drawing approximately 220,000 fans over two days as part of its ongoing “Arirang” world tour. The concerts concluded without major safety incidents, but they brought existing issues surrounding major K-pop concerts into focus, including The most immediate controversy emerged on opening night, when the concert began approximately 75 minutes late due to delays in audience entry. According to Hybe, multiple factors contributed to the delay, including confusion surrounding on-site guidance and congestion at fan gift distribution areas. The delays in entry occurred despite a safety operation involving 3,000 personnel, including event staff, local government officials, police officers, firefighters, and public agency employees. Beyond venue operations, accommodation-related complaints also resurfaced ahead of the concerts. According to data from the Korea Tourism Data Lab, Busan accounted for 185 of the 368 tourism-related complaints filed nationwide in May, representing more than half of all such reports. More than 80 percent came from foreign visitors. Accommodation-related complaints made up the overwhelming majority of the cases, with reports involving unilateral reservation cancellations, excessive cancellation fees, and sudden price increases. The issue was not entirely new. Similar complaints emerged during BTS’s “Yet To Come in Busan” concert in 2022 and have periodically surfaced during other major events held in the city. Illegal ticket resales also remained a challenge. Busan police said they detected 10 scalping cases involving 11 individuals during intensive enforcement operations around the stadium.