Korean League Update: The Team Nobody Wanted

I have been a long time viewer of this site, as many of the forums here are very educational with insightful information of the "Baseball Culture" in Asia. I have never felt the need to post a response to any thread, rather I simply enjoyed reading the different experiences of the game played throughout Japan, Korea, Taiwan, China. I think it is a great thing that so many fans support the game, especially in Japan, to where each Asian country continues to develop and grow into a stronger global presence in the game of baseball.

I have been following the progress of this situation in Korea, where the league is possibly (and more than likely) dropping from an 8 team league down to a 7 team league. This happens from time to time (in any baseball culture) where the present ownership can no longer support the financial responsibility - simply stating that the team is not generating any revenue, resulting in the sale of the team, or the team moves to another city. But is this the case here in Korea?

Not one baseball team in the KBO is profitable. All revenue generated (ticket sales, TV telecasts, etc.) by each team goes directly to the KBO. Stadiums are owned by the local city governments, so they may charge rental fees to use the stadium and such. So it is the KBO, in fact, that seems to be the only profiting entity in this baseball business. Company giants such as Samsung, KIA, Hyundai, Lotte, and other owners are simply paying massive amounts of money (ownership fee, salaries, team travel expenses, etc.) in return for advertising without seeing any benefits to their bottom line. Is it possible that the KBO is dispersing some sort of "pooled" revenue check to each of the owners after every season? I can not answer that, but from my limited knowledge and many conversations with executives, I would have to say no.

So if there is really no profit to be made owning a team in the KBO for any company, why aren't changes being made for the betterment of the league?

Case in point:

There were 2 companies that made strong offers to purchase the Unicorns and keep the Korean baseball league to 8 teams. The first being STX. It was reported that they had a deal done to purchase the Unicorns and become the new owners, but asked the KBO not to publicy announce this deal until a certain date. What does the KBO do? They announce (through the media) that a deal has been made with the company STX to purchase the baseball team. This sends the stockholders in a panic frenzy - forcing the company to back out of the deal.

Next:

Telecom giant KT comes in to the picture, and agrees on a purchase price with the KBO to buy the Unicorns. Everything looked great for the league to continue to grow and develop - at least in a positive way perhaps. But no, the KBO is forced (by LG Twins and Doosan Bears) to re-enter negotiations with the KT company and demand more money for the purchase price. The KT Corporation stepped down and said "goodbye"!

As a fan, I understand cultures are different in so many beautiful ways - and this applies to the "business culture" as well. But how can a situation be more apparent of a needed change in leadership than what is going on in Korean baseball right now? There are so many talented baseball players in Korea right now, of all ages, and it is sad to think they will not have a future in baseball because the majority of leadership is more interested in filling their own pockets rather than the future of this sport in their country.

I have learned many incredible insights from the Asian culture, to which have made me a better person. But, other aspects I simply do not understand - probably nor will I ever. For the Korean Baseball Organization, I just hope others can agree to make positive changes for the better of a whole, and not an individual!