Korea’s K League Resumption Attracts New Global Audiences

South Korea experienced one of the worst early outbreaks of COVID-19 outside China, forcing the country’s professional sports leagues to suspend their seasons.

But South Korea appears to have brought its outbreak under control, and the K League, its top-tier football league, will start on May 8, shortly after baseball resumes on May 5, both behind closed doors.

With sports fans across the world craving for live sporting action, there has been new-found interest among broadcasters who would not normally screen match-ups from the likes of leading clubs Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Pohang Steelers.

Sportradar, which last year signed a five-year deal to market the K League’s international media rights, has so far struck video licensing deals with digital football media companies Dugout, 433 and Copa90 for this season. ESPN has reportedly been in talks regarding US live match rights, while undisclosed broadcasters in China, Hong Kong, and Croatia have also snapped up deals. 

The K League has also confirmed interest from broadcasters in Australia, France, Germany and Italy, while a new domestic rights deal is set to be announced.

Dylan Chuan, Sportradar’s audiovisual sales director in the Asia-Pacific region (APAC), recently said that the Korean market “is a key focus” for the company, which aims to “strengthen the K League’s reputation and appeal to global audiences”. With the pandemic wiping live sport out of screens, the K League is poised to make a head start to gain global audiences, a terrain it has well-documented struggles in recent times.