The 55th National Youth Sports Festival Esports Tournament was held on the 23rd at the Busan Esports Arena. Esports was introduced as a new category this year, featuring both team and individual events for FC Online.

The tournament features 43 athletes from all 17 cities and provinces across the country, including the host city Busan, Seoul, Gyeonggi, Gangwon State, the Chungcheong region, the Jeonnam region, the Gyeongsang region, and Jeju Island, all of whom qualified through regional preliminary rounds.

Following today's matches, which concluded with the semifinals, Choi Yeon-woo (Chungcheongnam-do) and Hong Seok-woo (Gangwon State) have advanced to the finals. Hong, in particular, fought his way up from the Round of 16 and delivered a thrilling performance, defeating Hwang Jin-hwan (Jeju Special Self-Governing Province) in a penalty shootout during the semifinals. The final match between Choi and Hong is scheduled for 3:10 PM on the 24th.

The 55th National Youth Sports Festival Esports Tournament is highly significant as it marks the official inclusion of esports in a state-sanctioned athletic competition, allowing student athletes to have their tournament achievements recorded in their school transcripts.

The event is free and open to the public. The venue features various activities, including FC Online demo stations and cheering events for regional teams. The tournament is also being broadcast live via the official KeSPA School Esports YouTube channel, Chzzk, and SOOP.