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| Coach Song Gi-hwa of Global Friends, the basketball team comprised with children from multicultural families, teaches children at Itaewon Elementary School in Seoul, June 19, 2019. Korea Times photo by Ryu Hyo-jin |
By Jun Ji-hye
The country's one and only basketball team comprised of children from multicultural families is on the verge of being disbanded, due to the financial difficulties of its only corporate sponsor.
HanaTour, the nation's largest tour agency, had been sponsoring the Global Friends basketball team for about a decade, but had to suspend its support due to its worsening financial situation amid the COVID-19 pandemic that has lasted for over a year and a half.
The team was founded in 2012 to help children from multicultural families as well as immigrant children adapt to Korea and learn the value of teamwork. About 300 children have played on the team.
HanaTour provided 50 million won ($42,380) to 60 million won annually for the team's operation and training. But the company says it had no choice but to suspend its support, as the tourism industry has been hit hard by the prolonged pandemic.
"Our annual sales have decreased to about the 1 percent level, compared to the years before the pandemic. We have had to shut down our subsidiaries and overseas branches, and reduce staff," a HanaTour official said. "We tried our best to continue supporting the basketball team, but the situation was too hard."
The official added the firm has tried to find another corporate sponsor to pick up the slack, but to no avail.
According to a team official, the team is expected to run out of funds in around October, noting that some 20 children are still continuing their training in Itaewon in Seoul.
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