BTS World Expo 2030: Korean fans express concern about choice of venue for septet’s upcoming concert

Earlier this week, BIG HIT MUSIC (BTS’ label) confirmed that BTS would be hosting a global concert in Busan to aid South Korea's efforts in becoming the next host of the World Expo 2030.

South Korea is among the five countries that have applied to host the next World Expo in 2030, alongside Russia, Italy, Saudi Arabia, and Ukraine.

Bangtan members were selected as official ambassadors for the national project World Expo 2030 Busan. The K-pop juggernaut will be promoting the city of Busan with a global concert in October this year.

While ARMYs are excited that BTS will be holding their first concert ever since they announced their plans to take a break from group activities, Korean netizens have expressed concern and disappointment over their choice of venue.

According to various media reports, Busan, which is the second-largest city in South Korea after Seoul, is currently considering Bukhang Port as the proposed primary location for the World Expo 2030 Busan or the Busan Asiad Auxiliary Stadium as the venue for the October concert.

It is also important to note that Busan's largest multi-purpose stadium, the Busan Gudeok Stadium, will likely be booked until the end of October for the soccer season and will not be equipped to hold concerts.

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BTS World Expo 2030: Korean netizens take to social media to demand a better venue for septet’s concert

Fans have pointed out that since this is Bangtan’s first concert in three years in Busan, they deserved the biggest venue. The venues in consideration aren’t big enough to accommodate the “larger than life” aura of the reigning superstars.

It is also interesting to note that Busan is home to members Jimin and Jung Kook, who have expressed their happiness and interest upon hearing that the group will be performing in their hometown this year.

Korean netizens have requested the government and the authorities to reconsider their decision and give BTS a concert venue befitting of their God-like status so that they can successfully hold the World Expo 2030.

Check out the fan reactions below:

ARMYs all over the world are also excited about the fact that BTS will perform in Busan in October, which is also the birthday month of Bangtan’s angel member Jimin. Fans are ecstatic at the fact that Jimin will be celebrating his birthday in his hometown with his fans.

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Everything you need to know about BTS World Expo 2030

On June 24, the Busan Metropolitan Government and HYBE signed a memorandum of understanding related to the 2030 Busan World Expo.

As per this agreement, the talented seven-member group has been officially appointed as the ambassadors of the Busan World Expo 2030 and will host a global concert in Busan to back the country's proposal to host the 2030 World Expo in Busan.

South Korea is one of the five countries in contention for this bid. The 21st-century pop icons will not only serve as goodwill ambassadors for the event but will also participate in negotiations with the 170 countries that make up the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE), which votes for the host country.

On July 7, the first strategy meeting for the 2030 Busan World Expo was held at the bidding committee’s Seoul office to discuss promotional activities.

The CEO of HYBE, Park Ji-won, the secretary-general of the 2030 Busan World Expo bidding committee, Park Jung-wook, and the deputy economic mayor of Busan, Lee Sung-kwon, were present at the meeting.

Besides announcing the global concert, the bidding committee decided upon an ambassador appointment ceremony for BTS later this month to officially felicitate them.

HYBE’s Park Ji-won shared:

“With the business agreement made with the city of Busan as the foundation, we will propose cooperative measures in various fields and plan to actively cooperate for Busan’s bidding of the 2030 Busan World Expo, a business that is important on a national scale.”

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In other news, BTS has announced that each of the members will be releasing individual vlogs showcasing interesting facets of their daily lives. The vlogs will be posted every Saturday. This began on July 9, which is also ARMY day, the day the fandom officially got its current name.