[News Spot] Jamsil Main Stadium, the Sanctuary of Cold War's End Transforming into a Baseball Stadium

Jamsil Main Stadium to Transform into Baseball Stadium from 2027 to 2031

The historic site where the 1988 Seoul Olympics were held, Jamsil Main Stadium, is being transformed into a baseball stadium. It will make new history as a baseball stadium from 2027 to 2031 until the Jamsil Dome Stadium, scheduled for completion in 2032, opens.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Jamsil Main Stadium is regarded as a 'sacred place' of the end of the Cold War, which brought significant changes not only to Korea but also to world history. The 1988 Seoul Olympics restored the Olympic Games, which had been divided due to Cold War conflicts since the 1970s, into a fully unified global event. The 1980 Moscow Olympics and the 1984 Los Angeles (LA) Olympics, held before the Seoul Olympics, saw boycotts by Western and Eastern bloc countries respectively, continuing the atmosphere of confrontation. However, the Seoul Olympics saw participation from both Western and Eastern bloc countries, with a record 160 countries taking part. At that time, most International Olympic Committee (IOC) member countries gathered at Jamsil Main Stadium to hold the largest Olympics ever.

In particular, the Seoul Olympics showcased to the world how South Korea, which had been a poor country in the free world devastated by the Korean War, developed into a leading industrial nation through the Miracle on the Han River. This was a great shock not only to the athletes from Eastern bloc countries who participated but also to their citizens, and it is evaluated as a historical turning point that led to the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the former Soviet Union, starting with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, just one year later. The very site that created this page of history was Jamsil Main Stadium.

Even after fulfilling its historic mission as the venue of the Seoul Olympics, Jamsil Main Stadium became an important foundation for the growth of sports as well as K-POP culture. This is because Jamsil Main Stadium was the only venue in Korea capable of accommodating more than 50,000 spectators for large-scale concerts. If Tokyo Dome was the dream stage for Japanese idols, Jamsil Main Stadium was the place for Korean singers. HOT, GOD, Shinhwa, Cho Yong-pil, Lee Seung-hwan, Psy, IU, and others performed here.

Going forward, Jamsil Main Stadium will be transformed into the home stadium for the LG Twins and Doosan Bears. The two teams will play for a total of five seasons from 2027 to 2031 at a temporary baseball stadium to be built at Jamsil Main Stadium. The seating capacity of Jamsil Main Stadium, which originally could hold up to 60,000 spectators, is planned to be reduced to a maximum of 30,000, considering the recent average attendance of professional baseball games.

After the period of use as a temporary baseball stadium ends, Jamsil Main Stadium is expected to return as the main stadium in preparation for another Olympics. As Seoul City actively pursues hosting the 2036 Summer Olympics, Asian countries such as New Delhi, India, and Nusantara, Indonesia, are currently competing to host the event. Jamsil Main Stadium may open the possibility of becoming a venue for harmony in the new Cold War era, following its past role in Cold War reconciliation.