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National poll names Kia Tigers the most popular baseball team for 2nd year straight

Published: 31 Mar. 2026, 18:04 Updated: 01 Apr. 2026, 16:20

Kia Tigers manager Lee Bum-ho and coaching staff high-five players after a 9-4 win over the SSG Landers in a preseason game at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field on March 12. [YONHAP]

The Kia Tigers have been named the most popular club in Korean baseball for the second straight year in an annual national poll.

Gallup Korea released the results of its annual baseball survey on Tuesday, with 1,000 Koreans aged 18 or older responding to questions from March 24 to last Thursday. The 2026 KBO began last Saturday.

The Tigers came out on top in the favorite KBO club category, with 13 percent of the respondents picking the Gwangju-based team. The Tigers also earned 13 percent support in 2025, a year after winning their 12th Korean Series title.

The Tigers endured a trying 2025 season, though, finishing eighth among 10 KBO clubs to miss the postseason.

The Hanwha Eagles, who played in their first Korean Series since 1999 last year, ranked second in the Gallup poll with 10 percent of support.

The Samsung Lions and the Lotte Giants tied for third with 9 percent, and the LG Twins, the 2025 Korean Series champions, earned 5 percent of support.

In 2025, the KBO established a new attendance record with over 12.3 million fans and a new sellout mark with 331, topping the previous records of 10.8 million fans and 221 sellouts set in 2024.

More respondents picked the Twins to win the KBO title this year than any other team at 13 percent, followed by the Eagles at 9 percent.

The KBO has not seen a repeat champion since the Doosan Bears claimed back-to-back titles in 2015 and 2016.

In the rankings of favorite players, either based in the KBO or in the MLB, Lee Jung-hoo of the San Francisco Giants led all players for the second straight year with 13 percent.

Eagles pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin, who returned to the KBO in 2024 after over a decade in MLB, ranked second with 10 percent. Tigers third baseman Kim Do-yeong, the 2024 KBO MVP, finished third with 6 percent.

The survey had a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points and a 95 percent confidence level.

Yonhap