Launch of Second National Sports Policy Committee and Announcement of 'Sports Policy Vision 2030'

The Second National Sports Policy Committee, co-led by the Prime Minister and a private sector chair, has been launched.

On September 4, the government held the second meeting of the National Sports Policy Committee at the Government Seoul Building, chaired by Prime Minister Han Seung-soo, where the second round of private committee members was appointed and the 'Sports Policy Vision 2030' was announced.

The policy committee, established under the Sports Basic Act, is a public-private joint committee co-chaired by the Prime Minister and a private sector chair, including representatives from 16 central administrative agencies, the presidents of the Korea Sports Council and the Korea Paralympic Committee, and six appointed private members.

To strengthen cooperation among government departments related to sports policy and enhance public-private collaboration, six new private experts were appointed. Kim Soo-nyung, head coach of the women's archery team at Korea University, will serve as the private chair. The committee includes Park Sung-bae, a professor at Anyang University; Seo Jeong-hwa, a lawyer at YK Law Firm; Yoon Ji-woon, a professor at Korea National Sport University; Han Nam-hee, a professor at Korea University; and Ham Eun-joo, secretary-general of the Sports Human Rights Research Institute.

The first agenda item addressed by the new policy committee was the Sports Policy Vision 2030. The vision aims for 'Sports enjoyed by all, a healthy and happy Republic of Korea,' encompassing five key strategies and 13 core initiatives.

In her opening remarks, Prime Minister Han stated, "The achievements of professional sports increase public interest and participation, while expanding the base of recreational sports nurtures new athletes and talents. As more citizens enjoy sports, consumption of related products and services will rise, allowing sports to grow as an industry, which in turn will lead to investments in both professional and recreational sports."

She added, "The Sports Policy Vision 2030 focuses on creating this virtuous cycle, aiming to establish a sports ecosystem where professional sports, recreational sports, and the sports industry are organically linked and grow together."

The goals include achieving a 65% participation rate in recreational sports by 2030 (up from 62.9% last year) and expanding the domestic sports market to 115 trillion won (up from 84.7 trillion won in 2024). The proportion of world-class sports in which Korea has won medals is targeted to increase from 6.4% to 7.6%.

The first strategy focuses on promoting sports in daily life. The government plans to introduce AI-based health management services to provide exercise prescriptions tailored to individual fitness levels and expand the 'Healthy Money' program to 1.2 million participants by 2030. In 2027, financial products that offer discounts based on fitness certification levels and exercise records will be launched.

Kim Dae-hyun, the second vice minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, explained the 'Healthy Money' initiative, stating, "This program allows citizens to receive a refund of up to 50,000 won per year by exercising for 30 minutes a day at registered facilities, which will contribute to improving the health index of South Korea and reducing medical costs."

The budget for supporting sports activities for youth and adolescents will increase from 5.5 billion won this year to 42.4 billion won in the next government budget. The 'Youth Culture Pass,' previously limited to cultural activities, will be expanded to include sports starting next year.

Facilities will also be expanded, with plans to establish 110 new national sports centers by 2030. The construction cost for existing models is approximately 25 billion won, with a new 'lightweight' model costing between 10 billion and 15 billion won. The budget for renovating sports facilities will increase from 95.3 billion won this year to 255.8 billion won next year, with plans to renovate World Cup stadiums and aging athletic venues by 2030.

Starting next year, income tax deductions for sports facilities will also apply to employees with total salaries exceeding 70 million won. A new indicator for 'sports facility safety inspection results' will be introduced in the joint evaluation of local governments in 2028, and sports events with over 1,000 participants will be required to establish safety management plans.

The second strategy focuses on innovation in the sports sector and support for athletes. The Korea Sports Council will introduce external auditors and expand its audit organization. The electoral body for the Korea Sports Council president was expanded in August, and term limits will be implemented next year.

Regulations on participation restrictions for student-athlete transfers will be improved, and evaluation methods that reflect individual performance and contributions will be established for selecting athletes in team sports. A national team coaching academy will also be established. The number of full-time referees will increase from 137 in 25 sports this year to 586 next year.

This expansion of full-time referees is linked to the development of international referees. In response to a question about the quality of domestic football referees, Kim stated, "Overall, the level of domestic football referees is not as high as we think. This may be why we have not produced a single international referee for the FIFA World Cup."

He added, "Structurally, issues such as the age of referees and language barriers are significant. We will focus on addressing these issues to ensure that younger referees are developed with international refereeing in mind."

A safety net for athletes will be gradually expanded, starting with a compensation program for injuries and physical damages next year. The number of on-site inspections by human rights protectors will increase from 78 this year to 1,500 by 2027, and the amendment of the National Sports Promotion Act will strengthen the investigative authority and disciplinary enforcement of the Sports Ethics Center.

The third strategy focuses on the K-sports industry. To assist sports companies with technology but lacking collateral, a credit loan system based on guarantees will be introduced. From next year, support will also be provided for the commercialization of products incorporating new technologies such as AI and robotics.

A medium to large-scale sports and performance complex dome will be established to host sports events and K-pop concerts year-round. The Ministry plans to conduct research until June next year to establish selection criteria and select a location by the end of this year.

The K-League will gradually implement a video-based decision analysis system. Sports Toto will introduce a mobile official service and real-time sales during matches, while expanding the range of events and improving refund rates. According to the Gambling Industry Supervision Committee, the illegal sports betting market was estimated at 21.7 trillion won last year, about four times the legal market.

Kim noted, "Sports Toto is the main source of funding for sports, but there has been little improvement in the system for a long time. We aim to maximize refund rates to draw as much business as possible from the illegal market into the legal one, allowing it to function as a legitimate industry."

The fourth strategy focuses on sports for people with disabilities. The government plans to expand integrated sports classes for students with and without disabilities and increase the number of beneficiaries of the sports voucher program for people with disabilities to about 30,000 by 2027. The Bandabi Sports Center will establish 40 new locations by 2030.

The fifth strategy addresses international sports. The Ministry will improve the pre-feasibility studies for international sporting events previously conducted by local governments by commissioning research institutions. The National Sports Museum, which houses over 70,000 artifacts, is set to open on October 15 at Olympic Park in Seoul.

During the meeting, Yeom Hong-cheol, the newly appointed chairman of the 2027 Chungcheong Universiade Organizing Committee, reported on the preparations in various areas, including promotion, accommodation, food, transportation, and medical services.

The '2027 Chungcheong' event will take place from August 1 to 12, 2027, across the cities of Daejeon, Sejong, Chungbuk, and Chungnam. Organized by the International University Sports Federation (FISU), it will feature over 15,000 participants, including athletes and officials from more than 150 countries, competing in 18 sports. The total project cost is estimated at 563.2 billion won.

Renovations of all competition facilities, including three new stadiums, are scheduled to be completed by June 2027. The Sejong Athletes' Village will open in July 2027, and a second athletes' village will be established in Boryeong for the beach volleyball events. A comprehensive transportation plan will be developed by December this year, and a government-wide counter-terrorism and safety task force will be established in January next year.

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