Baseball game interrupted by fire near stadium

A South Korean baseball game was interrupted by a fire that broke out near a stadium in the southern part of the country on Tuesday. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season opening game between the Kia Tigers and the Kiwoom Heroes was halted during the bottom of the fourth inning, when black smoke from a fire near Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju reached the ballpark. When it became too difficult to see, home plate umpire Jeon Il-soo suspended the game, with the Heroes ahead 4-0 wi

BaseballMay 5, 2020

Baseball back in S. Korea as nation emerges from coronavirus pandemic

The scene was eerily quiet. If you were only trying to pick up some sound without seeing what was happening, you wouldn't have guessed that you were at a baseball game. Maybe you could still have heard a pin drop, but as LG Twins left-hander Cha Woo-chan was getting ready to deliver his first pitch of the 2020 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season Tuesday, the few people that were allowed at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul -- media, team officials and cheerleaders -- were waiting with bated breath.

BaseballMay 5, 2020

KBO club manager sees ESPN deal as 'good opportunity' for promotion

With the global coronavirus pandemic having brought most of the sporting world to a halt, LG Twins manager Ryu Joong-il is grateful for the start of a new South Korean baseball season and also for an opportunity to get the brand out to the international audience. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) will become the second pro baseball league, after the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) in Taiwan, to start a season. The Twins will host their Seoul rivals Doosan Bears at Jamsil Stadiu

BaseballMay 5, 2020

ESPN to broadcast S. Korean baseball games

The US sports cable giant ESPN will broadcast South Korean baseball games to its American audience, starting with the first day of the season on Tuesday. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Monday that ESPN has struck a deal with Eclat, the Korean company with international distribution rights to KBO games. ESPN will air one game per day and six games per week, with an opening day game between the Samsung Lions and the NC Dinos leading things off. The game is set to begin at 2 p.m.

BaseballMay 5, 2020

Baseball league to provide real-time feed of video review

Starting this season, when umpires in South Korean baseball put on their headsets to connect with the league replay center, fans will be able to watch the same feed as officials in the video room. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Monday that it will post replay clips in real time on its website, www.koreabaseball.com, starting with Opening Day on Tuesday. When managers challenge a call, the replay center reviews the play using feeds from about a dozen cameras from the broadcast

BaseballMay 4, 2020

Baseball managers, players thank frontline medical staff for making season possible

Of the many signs that life in South Korea is returning to normal amid the global coronavirus pandemic, the start of a new baseball season may be among the clearest. After all, if it is safe for grownups to take their bats and gloves and play a game for three hours, then it must be OK to engage in other activities, too. The 2020 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season will start Tuesday after being delayed from the original March 28 Opening Day due to the COVID-19 outbreak. As they prepare fo

BaseballMay 4, 2020

Short and sweet: Shortened pro football season to kick off Friday, with champs chasing history

It's going to be a shorter-than-usual season in South Korean men's professional football this year. Fans of the beautiful game are hoping it will be sweeter too. In one of the growing signs that life is returning to normal -- or at least some semblance of it -- amid the coronavirus pandemic, the K League football season will kick off Friday. After more than two months of delay, the three-time defending champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors will host the 2019 FA Cup winners Suwon Samsung Bluewings a

SoccerMay 4, 2020

Ex-Premier Leaguers hoping to take K League by storm in 2020

Of the many new faces who have newly arrived or switched kits for the 2020 K League 1 season, former Premier League player Lee Chung-yong may just find himself under the brightest spotlight. For one, the new Ulsan Hyundai FC midfielder brings impressive credentials -- he has 89 caps and played in two FIFA World Cups, with a solid run in the Premier League along the way. Plus, before even playing a match for his new club, Lee immediately became the new face of a team trying to shake off a devas

SoccerMay 4, 2020

Football league announces kickoff times for opening weekend

The South Korean football league announced kickoff times and matchups for the upcoming opening weekend on Wednesday. The Korea Professional Football League (K League) said the official season opener for the K League 1 between Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and Suwon Samsung Bluewings will begin at 7 p.m. on May 8. Jeonbuk are the three-time defending champions, and Suwon won the 2019 FA Cup. Jeonbuk will host the showdown at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, 240 kilometers south of Seoul. The leagu

SoccerApril 29, 2020

Nat'l football tournament to kick off May 9 after long delay

The national football governing body said Tuesday its signature tournament will kick off May 9. The Korea Football Association (KFA) said the 2020 FA Cup will begin with the first round featuring 32 semi-pro and amateur clubs from the K3, K4 and K5 Leagues. The tournament, which will also feature top-tier pro clubs, was slated to have begun March 14 but was delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak. Early matches will be played without fans in the stands to prevent the spread of the virus. The

SoccerApril 28, 2020

Another KBO manager voices displeasure with compressed season

The list of South Korean baseball managers unhappy with a compressed schedule for this season is growing. Son Hyuk of the Kiwoom Heroes has joined four other skippers in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) in criticizing the league office for forging ahead with the usual, 144-game schedule, despite the delayed start to the season. The 2020 Opening Day had been set for March 28, but the coronavirus outbreak forced the KBO to postpone it to next Tuesday. The KBO and its board of governors --

BaseballApril 28, 2020

ESPN nearing deal to broadcast S. Korean baseball games: source

The US sports media giant ESPN is nearing a deal to broadcast South Korean baseball games to its American audience this season, an industry source told Yonhap News Agency on Monday. The source, who requested anonymity because the deal wasn't finalized as of Monday afternoon, said ESPN could air multiple Korea Baseball Organization games per week. The exact duration of the deal and proposed financial terms weren't immediately clear. The KBO's regular season will begin on May 5, pushed back by m

BaseballApril 27, 2020

Every player in S. Korean football league to be tested for coronavirus before new season

The South Korean football league said Monday all players and coaches on its 22 teams across two divisions will be tested for the coronavirus before the start of their seasons next month. The Korea Professional Football League (K League) said the 12 teams in the first-division K League 1 and 10 clubs in the K League 2 will be subject to testing, prior to the May 8 kickoff. The 2020 season was slated to begin on Feb. 29, but the coronavirus pandemic forced the league to postpone the start. Last

SoccerApril 27, 2020

Kickoff around corner, S. Korean football league sells broadcasting rights to 10 countries

With the start of the new season around the corner, the South Korean football league said Monday it has sold broadcasting rights to 10 countries this year, mostly in Asia and Europe. The Korea Professional Football League (K League) added that its international rights holder, Sportsradar AG, has been fielding more inquiries from other countries since announcing its new kickoff date last week. The K League said last Friday its 2020 season, in both the top-flight K League 1 and second-tier K Le

SoccerApril 27, 2020

S. Korean athletes to be tested for coronavirus before returning to training center

South Korean Olympic athletes set to resume training next month will be tested for the coronavirus before their return to the national facilities, officials said Monday. The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) said the first batch of athletes and coaches to reenter the Jincheon National Training Center next month will undergo COVID-19 tests from May 11-13 at four designated hospitals. Those hospitals are located in Seoul and near Jincheon, 90 kilometers south of the capital. Athletes

More SportsApril 27, 2020

Pro football season to kick off May 8

After more than two months of delay caused by the coronavirus outbreak, the South Korean men's professional football season will kick off on May 8. The Korea Professional Football League (K League) announced Friday that its top-flight K League 1 and the second-tier K League 2 will both begin their 2020 season on May 8. The official opening match will have three-time defending champions Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors host Suwon Samsung Bluewings at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, 240 kilometers so

SoccerApril 24, 2020

Pro soccer league to meet with clubs Friday over new kickoff date

The Korean soccer league will meet with club officials Friday to determine the new kickoff date for the season delayed by the novel coronavirus pandemic. The K League said Wednesday that its board meeting with club executives will take place at 2 p.m. Friday at the Korea Football Association House in Seoul. There are 12 teams in the top-flight K League 1 and 10 clubs in K League 2. Their season was slated to kick off on Feb. 29, but the league postponed it indefinitely five days prior due to

SoccerApril 22, 2020

[Photo News] Korea ready to play ball amid COVID-19 pandemic

The Korea Baseball Organization announced Tuesday that the 2020 regular season will kick off on May 5, which is also the Children’s Day holiday. The season was postponed from its regular start date of March 28 due to the coronavirus pandemic.  Four exhibition games are to be played for the preseason, one of which started Tuesday and the last to be wrapped up Monday. All exhibition games and early regular season games will be played without fans, amid concerns over the spread of t

BaseballApril 22, 2020

Baseball league opts for safety in determining new schedule

The number of new coronavirus cases in South Korea has been in decline for the past several days. But in setting the new schedule for the 2020 season, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) was not taking any chances. The KBO announced Tuesday the new season will begin on May 5. The original Opening Day was March 28, but the league had to postpone it due to the coronavirus outbreak. Encouraged by signs of improvement on the quarantine front, the KBO had hoped to open the season as early as May

BaseballApril 21, 2020

S. Korean baseball regular season to begin May 5

Baseball will be back in South Korea on May 5. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Tuesday that the 2020 regular season, postponed from its March 28 start date due to the coronavirus outbreak, will begin May 5, which is also the Children's Day holiday. The decision was reached at the league's meeting with its board of governors, made up of presidents from the league's 10 clubs. In preparation for the regular season, teams will play exhibition games starting Tuesday. They were init

BaseballApril 21, 2020