South Korea Sports – The Most Popular Sports in South Korea
Wondering what sports the South Koreans like to play?
Discover everything about the most popular sports in South Korea in this post. ⚾️
The Most Popular South Korean Sports
Find below South Korea national sports, ranked by popularity:
| Rank | Sport | Popularity |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baseball | 62% |
| 2 | Soccer | 52.6% |
| 3 | Golf | 30.9% |
| 4 | Swimming | 26.9% |
| 5 | Basketball | 26.3% |
| 6 | Esports | 22.6% |
| 7 | Badminton | 22.1% |
| 8 | Figure skating | 21.9% |
So there you have them, the most popular South Korean sports! Keep reading below for more information about each sport in South Korea.
What is the National Sport of South Korea?
The national sport of South Korea is taekwondo. Created in 1955, taekwondo is a sport that is representative of Korea and embodies important Korean values such as character, respect, modesty, etc. Through this sport, which is widely recognized in the world, it is possible to train both body and mind.
Learn More About South Korea Popular Sports
South Korea is the southern part of the Korean Peninsula, in East Asia. It is only bordered by the infamous North Korea, and its economy is one of the ten greatest on the planet. Its capital city is Seoul, which counts more than 9,733,000 inhabitants (but more than 25,000,000, or half of the country’s population, if you include the metropolitan area!).
An interesting part of the country that I wanted to tackle is its most popular sports. In light of that, I have listed all of South Korea popular sports, and I hope you will love them:
Baseball
The most popular sport in South Korea is baseball. The sport dates back to 1905, when it was introduced by American missionaries. Ever since its debut and up until now, it has always had a very large fanbase in South Korea. The national league, the KBO League, is especially popular, and it features 10 teams competing against each other throughout the year. It was established in 1982.
The country has one of the best teams in the world, and it regularly plays in the World Baseball Classic.
Famous South Korean Baseball players: Park Chan-ho, Shin-Soo Choo, Ryu Hyun-jin, Byung-hyun Kim, Hee-seop Choi, Lee Dae-ho, Ji-man Choi, Kim Kwang-hyun, Koo Dae-sung, Lim Chang-yong, Seo Jae-weong, Bong Jung-keun, Sun-woo Kim, Yang Hyeon-jong, Lee Sang-hoon
Soccer
The second most popular sport in South Korea is soccer. For an Asian team, South Korea’s national team is very good at football. Its best achievement was to reach the 2002 FIFA World Cup semi-finals, which the country co-hosted alongside Japan. Also, it has always qualified to every World Cup since Mexico 1986, and even broke out of groups twice. It also won a bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
There is also a national league, the K-League, and the most famous South Korean football player is definitely Son Heung-min, who saw much success in the Premier League.
Famous South Korean Soccer players: Son Heung-min, Hong Myung-bo, Park Ji-sung, Ki Sung-yueng, Cha Bum-kun, Kim Joo-sung, Park Chu-young, Lee Woon-jae, Hwang Sun-hong
Golf
The third most popular sport in South Korea is golf. Golf is very rarely in the top 3 sports of any country because it is usually reserved for the upper classes. Well, in South Korea, this is the exact reason why it is so popular. The sport is considered a status symbol, and many South Koreans enjoy it as a pastime.
For the competitive scene, the main success of the country comes from women’s golf: 47 South Koreans play in the LPGA tour, the world’s best tour.
Number of Golf licensed players in South Korea: 2,100
Famous South Korean Golf players: K. J. Choi, Si Woo Kim, Bae Sang-moon, Yang Yong-eun, Inbee Park, Se Ri Pak, An Byeong-hun, Kevin Na, Sung Hyun Park, Charlie Wi, Sungjae Im
Swimming
The fourth most popular sport in South Korea is swimming. South Korea is mostly surrounded by water, with a 2,413 km / 1,499 mi coastline, so it is no surprise that water sports like swimming are that popular in the country.
The most famous South Korean swimmer is definitely Park Tae-hwan, who is the first Asian swimmer to claim a gold medal in the men’s 400-meter freestyle as well as the first South Korean to win an Olympic medal. He played a huge role in popularizing the sport in the country.
Famous South Korean Swimming players: Park Tae-hwan, Yang Jae-hoon, Hwang Sun-woo, Kang Ji-seok, Lee Ju-ho, Moon Jae-kwon, Cho Sung-jae, Yang Jung-doo, Moon Seung-woo
Basketball
The fifth most popular sport in South Korea is basketball. Basketball is one of the fastest-growing sports in South Korea. It is especially popular among the youth of the country, but there is still a national league, the Korean Basketball League. It was founded in 1997 and has 10 teams. The South Korean basketball team is very successful, having won no less than 25 medals at the Asian Basketball Championship.
The most notorious South Korean basketball player is Ha Seung-jin, who is the only one to ever join the NBA.
Famous South Korean Basketball players: Ha Seung-jin, Hur Jae, Kim Joo-sung, Choi Jin-soo, Heo Hoon, Oh Se-keun, Yang Hee-jong, Joo Hee-Jung, Lee Jung-suk, Chun Hee-chul
Esports
The sixth most popular sport in South Korea is esports. If one country is known for esports, it is definitely South Korea. The country has produced some of the most famous and successful players on the planet, including League of Legends superstar Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, Warcraft III visionary Jang “Moon” Jae-Ho, and StarCraft II legend Lee “Life” Seung-hyun.
The reason for the country to have so many talented esports players is that starting at a young age, South Koreans are far more encouraged to play video games (compared to other countries).
Famous South Korean Esports players: Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, Jang Jae-Ho, Lee Seung-hyun, Lee Jae-Dong, Lee Young-Ho, Jang Min Chul, Kim Taek-Yong, Ma Jae-Yoon
Badminton
The seventh South Korea most popular sport is badminton. Badminton is popular throughout the whole continent of Asia. In South Korea, it is also the case, even though it is not as famous as in Indonesia for instance. Many Koreans play the game, and outdoor recreation parks often feature badminton courts.
As for the international competition, South Koreans very often reach the finals in both regional and world championships and are very proficient at the sport. For instance, Lee Yong-dae was crowned Olympic champion in 2008.
Famous South Korean Badminton players: Lee Yong-dae, Lee Hyo-jung, Yoo Yeon-seong, Jung Jae-sung, Ko Sung-hyun, Jung Kyung-eun, Kim Ki-jung, Shin Seung-chan, Bang Soo-hyun
Figure skating
The eighth and last most popular sport in South Korea is figure skating.
You might not expect ice skating in any ranking of the most popular sports, but South Korea is very fond of it. Kids start practicing the sport very early when they are 5 years old. They immediately compete and have private coaching… on a daily basis! South Koreans are very committed when it comes to being good at something, especially parents when they register their children in any activity.
Famous South Korean Figure skating players: Kim Yuna, Cha Jun-hwan, Choi Da-bin, Park So-youn, Lee June-hyoung, Park Sung-hoon, Kim Ye-lim, Byun Se-jong, Kim Hae-jin
So there you have them, these were all the most popular sports in South Korea. I hope you enjoyed them and that you learned something new today. Keep reading to get a few more facts about sports in South Korea.
What sports are South Koreans good at?
Most notoriously, e-sports are by far the sports in which South Koreans are most dominant. They have conquered most of them (if not all) popular games like League of Legends or StarCraft II. Whether it is for individual or team games, South Koreans are always part of the equation, and many foreign regions import talented players from the country.
Other than that, baseball is also a sport that South Korea is very proficient at, having won a gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games.
Is swimming popular in Korea?
Swimming is largely popular in South Korea, as it is the number 4 sport on this list. With a large coastline, South Koreans enjoy swimming a lot. The main reason for that might be the success of Park Tae-hwan, the first Asian swimmer to claim a gold medal in the men’s 400-meter freestyle, and the first South Korean to win an Olympic medal.
Is basketball popular in Korea?
Similar to swimming, basketball is very popular in South Korea. It is a bit different though, as it is on the rise, especially amongst the youth. The sport will probably be much higher in the rankings in a few years or decades, so stay tuned!
More Sport Facts!
Loved these South Korea sports facts? Want to see what sports are the most popular in other countries?
Then check out these posts:
Or click here to see ALL the facts up on the blog! Spoiler alert: there’s A LOT of them.
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