Remarks about 'military exemption' put South Korea's 53-year sports draft waiver at a crossroads

Defense Ministry eyes gradual reduction, eventual abolition

Fairness gaps across sports and competitions under scrutiny

Delayed enlistment, military sports unit cited as alternatives

Other countries let elite athletes serve while competing

South Korean players celebrate after winning the gold medal in the men's football final against Japan at Toyota Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, on Saturday at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. Separate from the team's performance on the pitch, remarks made by some players after the victory have sparked a backlash. [Yonhap]

The system that rewards Asian Games gold medalists with enrollment as arts and sports personnel — a benefit that in effect exempts them from active military duty — has reached a critical inflection point after 53 years. Remarks by some members of the South Korean men's football team at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, in which players openly framed the benefit as a "military exemption," ignited a debate that has quickly moved beyond the players' conduct to the question of redesigning the system itself.

The current mood is less a back-and-forth debate over whether to keep or scrap the military service benefit than a shift in focus toward how to reform it and what safeguards to put in place for athletes' careers. With the Ministry of National Defense setting gradual reduction and eventual abolition as its policy goal, and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism pledging to pursue reforms, the center of gravity in the discussion has moved rapidly away from whether to preserve the status quo.

The controversy erupted immediately after South Korea's men's football team beat Japan on Saturday to claim a fourth consecutive Asian Games gold. Yang Min-hyeok said after the win, "There's the reward of a military exemption, so I think I played the whole tournament with just that one thing in mind." Captain Lee Gi-hyeok held up his gold medal and declared, "I'm not going to the army." Park Seung-su posted a photo on social media from the locker room wearing what is colloquially known as a "discharge cap." The players apologized after the backlash grew.

Legally, it is not a "military exemption." Athletes who finish in the top three at the Olympics or win gold at the Asian Games are enrolled as arts and sports personnel and fulfill a 34-month service obligation in their field, including community service using their skills. But by describing the benefit themselves as a "military exemption" and framing it as a reward for winning gold, the players brought long-simmering unease about the system to the surface.

The government's response has been sharp. Defense Minister Kang Shin-cheol told the National Assembly's defense committee during a national audit on Wednesday that "gradually reducing and ultimately abolishing the military service benefit is the Defense Ministry's goal." He also said he found it "deeply regrettable" that the players had "denigrated the sacred duty of national defense."

The Defense Ministry plans to incorporate this into its national defense reform master plan. The proposal did not emerge suddenly because of this Asian Games controversy. The ministry had already been reviewing a broader reduction of supplementary service arrangements in light of a shrinking pool of eligible conscripts and fairness concerns among those subject to military duty — and this Asian Games episode brought those issues into the open.

Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Choi Hwi-yeong, speaking at the same day's national audit before the National Assembly's culture, sports and tourism committee, said "the concept of military service and the value placed on fairness seem to have changed considerably with the times." He said the ministry would gather opinions from the sports and arts communities and consult with the Defense Ministry and the Military Manpower Administration to draw up a comprehensive plan.

Defense Minister Kang Shin-cheol answers lawmakers' questions during the National Assembly defense committee's national audit at the Ministry of National Defense in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday. [Yonhap]

Foreign media have also taken notice of the link between gold medals and military service. South Korea's sports-based military service benefit has drawn international attention at every major games. When Son Heung-min won gold at the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games and was relieved of the burden of active duty, outlets including the BBC and the Guardian gave the story prominent coverage.

This time, the spotlight has shifted to the system itself. The Associated Press reported that the South Korean government could reduce or abolish the military service benefit for athletes following the backlash triggered by the players' remarks. It noted that questions about the fairness of special treatment tied to sporting achievement had resurfaced, given that most South Korean men are required to complete mandatory service — including BTS members, who have fulfilled their military obligations.

The Guardian and Singapore's Channel NewsAsia also covered the players' remarks alongside the government's moves toward reform. The South China Morning Post highlighted the possibility that the controversy could lead to an overhaul of the 53-year-old policy.

Where foreign media attention once focused on the distinctive Korean system — and on individual star athletes who could lighten their military burden by winning gold — it has now broadened to the fairness and rationale of the system itself.

The arts and sports personnel system was introduced in 1973 with the stated aim of enhancing national prestige. World championships were initially among the qualifying events, but the criteria changed several times, and from 1990 a top-three finish at the Olympics or a gold medal at the Asian Games became the standard. Results at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2006 World Baseball Classic temporarily made those competitions eligible as well, but they were later removed after concerns arose about inequity across sports.

Whether it remains valid today to link military service benefits directly to the "national prestige" standard set more than 50 years ago is now being questioned. Seo Yi-jong, a sociology professor at Seoul National University, said in a media interview that "our country has already become an advanced nation and is producing more than enough results in sports," arguing that the system should be updated to reflect current standards of fairness rather than perpetuating an outdated prestige-based criterion. He added that if there is a need to reward strong performances at international competitions, other approaches — such as cash prizes — could be considered.

Under the current criteria, winning a world championship alone does not qualify an athlete for enrollment as arts and sports personnel, yet a single Asian Games gold medal does. Given that the prestige and competitive structure of international events varies widely by sport, the question is whether a uniform standard of "Olympic top three or Asian Games gold" is appropriate.

Attorney Kim So-jeong said the current criteria, which treat world championship winners and Asian Games gold medalists differently, "clearly carry the risk of violating the right to equality through an imbalance in rewards."

The concentration of benefits in certain sports is also an issue. Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Jo Gye-won said at Wednesday's national audit of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism that 36 of the 43 athletes eligible for the military service benefit from this Asian Games were football and baseball players, and said the imbalance across sports needed to be addressed.

Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Choi Hwi-yeong answers lawmakers' questions during the National Assembly culture, sports and tourism committee's national audit on Wednesday. [Yonhap]

There is no need to dismiss everything the arts and sports personnel system has accomplished. Athletes' peak years are short, and a career interruption in their 20s can affect both performance and longevity. Minister Choi acknowledged that the system has genuinely contributed to helping elite athletes and artists maintain and develop their abilities.

But the case for protecting athletes' careers and the argument that military service benefits are the only way to do so are separate questions. The issue is whether the current arrangement is the only solution to preventing career interruptions for athletes.

Alternative approaches are being discussed. Democratic Party lawmaker Jo proposed replacing the current system — in which a single result at a single competition determines eligibility — with a points-based system that accumulates results across multiple international events. The idea is to preserve the basic framework of the existing system while fixing the structure in which a single medal determines military service benefits.

If the benefit is reduced or abolished, other options being discussed include allowing athletes to delay enlistment or expanding the Armed Forces Athletic Corps — known as Sangmu — to create more opportunities for athletes to serve while continuing to compete. Minister Choi expressed agreement on the need to strengthen Sangmu.

Other countries have found different ways to manage the issue. Singapore and Turkey allow elite athletes who meet certain criteria to defer enlistment while keeping the military service obligation itself intact.

Israel supports top athletes in continuing to train and compete while on active duty. Finland, Switzerland and Austria also run dedicated military sports programs that allow service members to pursue professional training alongside their duties. These examples show that protecting athletes' careers does not have to mean in effect replacing the military service obligation.

The environment surrounding the system has also changed. A shrinking pool of conscripts due to the low birth rate is a variable that did not exist in 1973 — which is why the Defense Ministry cites declining manpower alongside fairness and equity as grounds for reducing or abolishing the benefit.

The question that remains is what comes next. If a 53-year-old system has run its course, how should South Korea protect athletes' brief peak years and international competitiveness? What should replace it in a way that minimizes career disruption for sporting talent without undermining the fairness of military service?

Minister Choi said "it is true that the arts and sports personnel military service benefit system has contributed to helping athletes and artists with outstanding abilities maintain and develop their skills," and pledged to gather opinions from the sports and arts communities and consult with the Defense Ministry and the Military Manpower Administration to produce a comprehensive plan.

yjc@heraldcorp.com