K-pop boy band BTS are returning – and so is Army

Their comeback spotlights the growing influence of modern fandoms and the role millions of BTS fans played in shaping it. Read more at straitstimes.com.

SEOUL – BTS’ return in March will be the most closely watched K-pop comeback in recent memory.

But the spotlight surrounding it is not focused only on the artistes. It is also turning to Army, the worldwide fandom that has played a central role in the South Korean boy band’s rise and stands as one of the largest and most organised communities in pop music today.

By the numbers alone, Army is formidable. More than 44.7 million users follow the group on X, while 33.5 million users are registered on Weverse, the global fan platform used by BTS and other artistes.

BTS are also the first K-pop group on Weverse to have more than 30 million registered fans. More than 82 million users subscribe to BTS’ official YouTube account and 73.9 million on TikTok.

Army fan bases exist in dozens of countries, often organised into national or regional groups such as US BTS Army, UK BTS Armation and Army Power Mexico. Though the exact numbers of fans behind each regional fandom are unknown, they quickly sold out stadium-size venues for BTS’ upcoming Arirang world tour.

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum recently cited the scale of the Mexican fandom when she said roughly one million young Mexicans were trying to buy tickets for BTS concerts, far exceeding the 150,000 seats available.