Claudia Sheinbaum, the president of Mexico, announced that she will host the members of K-pop band BTS on Wednesday (May 6) at the National Palace, ahead of the group's scheduled concerts in Mexico City. The announcement of the meeting at the official residence -- where the Mexican head of state works and resides -- was confirmed by the president herself during her morning press conference.
"This is for the youth -- today, the group BTS is coming here to the National Palace," the president said, informing that the meeting is scheduled for 5 p.m. local time. "They have something very beautiful: What they sing always conveys messages of friendship, of peace -- very humanistic messages -- and of love."
Due to the massive interest sparked by the South Korean group's return, Sheinbaum announced that a balcony at the presidential headquarters -- which faces the iconic Zócalo in the Historic Center of the city -- will be opened so that RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin, V and Jung Kook can greet their fans.
The announcement comes ahead of the three shows BTS will perform at the GNP Seguros Stadium this Thursday (May 7), Saturday (May 9) and Sunday (May 10). Tickets for these shows, organized by promoter Ocesa, sold out quickly, with more than 136,000 tickets purchased.
Given the high demand, Sheinbaum even requested that South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung help arrange more BTS concerts in Mexico. As revealed by the president on Jan. 26, the South Korean government responded three weeks later, stating that they forwarded the request to HYBE, the company that represents BTS.
Sheinbaum's request came amid controversy over the presale and high demand for tickets to the BTS shows, which led her administration to demand "transparency" in ticket sales from Ocesa and Ticketmaster Mexico through the Federal Consumer Protection Agency (Profeco) after complaints on social media and nearly 5,000 emails. The frenzy sparked by the announcement of the ARIRANG World Tour in Mexico sent resale prices soaring in the country, reaching as high as $9,000.
BTS' visit to Mexico marks the group's return to the country after performances in 2014, 2015 and 2017. This new series of concerts has generated high economic expectations, with the National Chamber of Commerce, Services and Tourism of Mexico City estimating an economic impact of approximately $107.5 million USD (1.861 billion pesos).
