In the Philippines, one of the popular Southeast Asian countries to visit Korea, K-sports tourism marketing activities are carried out.

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister PARK Bo Gyoon, MCST), together with the Korean Cultural Center in the Philippines (Director KIM Myeongjin, KCC), the Korea Tourism Organization (President KIM Jang-sil, KTO), and the Korea Basketball Federation (President KIM Hee-ok, KBL) held K-Sports Tourism Event (My Korea Story with Filipino KBL Players) on June 3 (Sat) in Manila, Philippines.

 K-Sports Tourism talk shows, basketball competitions, and more were held for Filipino middle school, high school, and college basketball players and fans

The Philippines is one of the three major Southeast Asian countries to visit Korea; basketball is very popular in the country.[1] The KBL’s Asian quota system allows Filipino players to play in the league in Korea, making the Philippines a premier destination for basketball and other K-sports-related tourism activities.[2]

In this event, the charm of K-sports tourism, along with Rhon Jhay Abarrientos (Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus) and Sam Josef Rasmo “SJ” Belangel (Daegu KOGAS Pegasus), Filipino players who are active in KBL, has been introduced in Manila.[3] On June 3 (Sat), at 10:00 a.m., a special lecture and fan signing event was held at the KCC. The two players introduced the Korean culture and tourism they experienced while working in Korea to the Filipino people and promoted K-tourism’s charm. At 2:00 p.m., the basketball court at Shangri-la the Fort (Manila) hosted a special event for 200 middle school, high school, and college players and basketball fans, including a talk show about entering the Korean professional league and a basketball competition.

 The discovery of K-sports tourism content makes it a bucket list item for people around the world

The MCST and the KTO, together with associations and clubs for various sports alongside basketball, plan to uncover K-sports tourism content that allows foreign tourists to visit Korea to watch professional games and support their own players. Through this, the two organizations plan to further diversify and organize related businesses so that watching and experiencing K-Sports can become a bucket list for people around the world.

KIM Sang-wook, Director-General of tourism industry policy at the MCST, said, “This is the first project that was uncovered and implemented at the ‘Sports Tourism Council,’ which was held for the first time on April 12 this year.” He also added, “We will continue to arrange organized events to firmly promote attractive K-Sports tourism overseas.”