Safety concerns including damaged materials and insufficient load-bearing capacity have been identified at large sports venues such as Gocheok Sky Dome, Jamsil Sports Complex and Incheon Munhak Stadium. Auditors warned that heavy snow combined with strong winds could create dangerous conditions.
According to an interim announcement on the 21st of the Board of Audit and Inspection's audit of safety management at sports facilities used by large crowds, the Seoul Facilities Corporation found in June 2024 that 23 of the 466 connection points on the steel truss frame of Gocheok Sky Dome's roof were bent beyond the 15-millimeter construction tolerance. Eight months later, a detailed safety inspection recommended reinforcing both sides of the trusses, but only one side was reinforced following the contractor's opinion. When the audit board commissioned a specialized agency to review structural safety, however, the reinforced truss connection points were found to lack sufficient load-bearing capacity.
At Incheon Munhak Stadium, officials had already determined in 2024 that damage was progressing in 50 steel truss members in the roof. Reinforcement work, however, has been pushed back to 2028. The cantilever roof structure at Jamsil Sports Complex was also diagnosed as lacking sufficient load-bearing capacity and in need of structural reinforcement. Even so, the Seoul Metropolitan Government pressed ahead with a remodeling project without reinforcing the structure, and only after the audit did it commission a detailed safety inspection to assess structural soundness.
The audit board said prompt corrective measures are needed ahead of year-end concerts and other events. "It is not at the point where the stadiums need to be closed immediately," an official at the board said, "but it is true that they are dangerous if adverse conditions such as strong winds and heavy snow come together." As of last year, the 25 large sports facilities nationwide that draw more than 100,000 spectators a year hosted games and performances attended by 3.04 million people.
The audit board launched the review as the number of people using sports facilities has surged with the growth of professional sports and K-pop concerts, while lax facility management has heightened the risk of safety accidents. At Pohang Steelyard, one of the venues audited, seven defects including cracks in walls were found but left unrepaired, and in August this year, after the audit had ended, a piece of stone fell from the ceiling, injuring one visitor and halting a K League match. Last year, a structure at Changwon NC Park's Masan stadium fell, killing one visitor and injuring two others.