The Korea Game User Association and G-Sik Baekgwa, a YouTube channel boasting roughly 940,000 subscribers, have joined forces to tackle the ongoing crisis involving the denial of concurrent employment permits for esports players serving as social service agents.

The Association and G-Sik Baekgwa announced that they submitted a public petition to the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the 17th, while also filing for formal legal interpretation and information disclosure requests with the Military Manpower Administration. They have launched an all-encompassing response, reaching out to the Democratic Party of Korea's Special Committee on Games and the KeSPA Esports Fair Committee to demand active intervention in the matter.

The controversy ignited when players of titles like 'Eternal Return' and 'Shadowverse'—who had previously been granted permission to play under strict non-profit conditions, such as playing outside duty hours and donating all prize money—were suddenly informed that their permits were being revoked without any clear change in circumstances. The result? A number of players have been forced to announce their retirement, effectively ending their careers. It is a grim situation that has left national-level talents and promising prospects on the brink of forced early exit, causing significant alarm among the gaming community.

The Association has firmly urged the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to send official documents to the Military Manpower Administration and local service agencies, verifying the public interest and non-profit nature of these activities to ensure players can maintain their permits. Furthermore, they are demanding a clear legal interpretation from the Military Manpower Administration on whether the definition of a 'professional player' under the 'Social Service Agent Service Management Regulations' must necessarily include the pursuit of profit, such as receiving wages or prize money.

The Association argues that even if a player is affiliated with a team, their lack of wages and the act of donating all prize money means they lack the 'pursuit of profit'—a key indicator of professional status—and therefore should not be subject to concurrent employment restrictions. They further added that restricting previously granted permits without any valid change in circumstances may violate the 'principle of protection of trust' under the Framework Act on Administrative Procedures.

They have also begun a fact-finding mission. The team has filed an information disclosure request for all internal review reports and specific directives sent by the Military Manpower Administration headquarters or regional offices to service agencies regarding the permission or restriction of esports activities for games like 'Eternal Return' and 'Shadowverse' in 2026.

Kim Sung-hoe of G-Sik Baekgwa stated, "The sustainable growth of South Korea’s esports industry and the dreams of our young players must not be crushed by rigid administration." Lee Chul-woo, President of the Korea Game User Association, added, "We earnestly request responsible mediation and judgment from relevant ministries and agencies to minimize the damage to players who have been planning their careers around permits that were already in place."