Baekhodori and Todeogi Win Grand Prizes at 2025 Public Character Festival

The 2025 South Korea Local Government and Public Character Festival was held in Daejeon on September 13, 2025. Winners received booths at the Daejeon Content Fair, and several organizations ran booths on September 13 and 14.

Grand Prizes: Baekhodori and Todeogi

Baekhodori, the character of the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation (KSPO), placed first among 20 organizations in the final round and won the grand prize in the public category. Baekhodori, inspired by a white tiger, won a top excellence award at the same festival in 2024 and has produced actual merchandise through a merchandise design contest. Todeogi, the character of Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, also won a grand prize at the 2025 festival. Gimhae's characters include Haedongi along with Todeogi.

Top Excellence and Excellence Awards

Ums Friends of Gangdong District, Seoul, won a top excellence award. Ums Friends are made up of Umi, Bitto, Tori and Kogi. Gangdong District displayed merchandise and held hands-on events at its Daejeon Content Fair booth. In the festival category, Ditto and Friends of the Haenam Dinosaur Museum won a top excellence award. Ditto and Friends are the signature Haenam dinosaur characters, created in 2017. Gwangju Metropolitan City won an excellence award.

Encouragement and Innovation Awards

Cheonan Friends of Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, and Busyeon of the Busan Metropolitan City Office of Education won encouragement awards. Cheonan said it plans to open a merchandise store in 2026 and expand into animation and webtoons. The Eodaeno Crew (Boreumi, Myoi and Myungi), born in a fishing village in Donghae City, Gangwon State, won the product development innovation award. Jabongi of the Korea Central Volunteer Center won the ESG innovation award. The center ran its booth with seven volunteers and wore a Jabongi costume. "Muntori and Portals" of the Korea Culture Information Service Agency (KCISA) won the media promotion innovation award.

Finalists Too

Busan Port Authority reached the final round in the public category and held a summer limited-edition merchandise raffle in August.

Characters from many organizations, including public institutions, local governments, a museum, an education office and a volunteer center, shared awards in one place. The winning organizations carried on at their Daejeon Content Fair booths, showing merchandise and mascot costumes.