This article is based on my experience visiting Tainan City, Taiwan, in October 2023.
Taiwan has various tourist attractions. When I visited Taiwan in October, I was hoping I might be able to watch a professional baseball game. This article shares my experience watching a professional baseball game during my stay in Tainan City, including how to enjoy Taiwanese professional baseball and information about tickets.
If You’re Watching Taiwanese Professional Baseball, the Fun is the Cheerleaders!
Popular in Japan Too
Taiwanese professional baseball is also popular. Since Taiwanese teams play against the Japanese national team in the Asia Series, some of you might have seen them. There have also been Taiwanese players on Japanese teams, so it’s fair to say the relationship is deep. Recently, the Taiwanese players received great acclaim for expressing their gratitude for Japan’s support during the Taiwan earthquake when the World Baseball Classic (WBC) qualifiers were held in Japan.
Taiwanese Professional Baseball
However, Taiwanese professional baseball has another extremely popular attraction besides the game and the players themselves. And that is the cheerleaders!
For several years now, cheerleaders like Chun Chun and Lin Shan have become famous in Japan through YouTube Shorts videos. I will share my actual experience when I watched a game.
Uni-President 7-Eleven Lions, Based in Tainan City
During my stay in Tainan City, there were several games held at the home stadium in Tainan. So, I decided to go watch a game against the CTBC Brothers. The reason was that the famous cheerleader Chun Chun is part of the CTBC Brothers!
Ticket Reservation/Purchase
Games were scheduled for two consecutive days. I tried to reserve and purchase tickets online through the respective team websites, but they didn’t work well, so I gave up. Instead, I went to a 7-Eleven and used the terminal there to purchase and issue the tickets. Since it was still a week before the game, I was able to buy them at an early bird discount price.
Game Canceled Due to Typhoon, Re-purchased Tickets for the Next Day
However, the game was canceled due to a typhoon, and I had to get a refund for my tickets at 7-Eleven again. I immediately purchased tickets for the next day’s game, but the good seats were already sold out, and the price was full retail with no discount.
Game Day at the Stadium
I took a local bus to Tainan Municipal Baseball Stadium where the game was being held. I arrived quite early and watched all the pre-game events. The Uni-Lions seemed to have a partnership with Japan’s Seibu Lions, as there was a video playing on the big screen showing Taiwanese cheerleaders visiting the Seibu Dome. There were also mini-concerts by singers.
This time, I took seats on the third base side. I chose the visitor’s side, not the home team Lions’ first base side, because my goal was to see Chun Chun, the main cheerleader of the visiting Brothers. However, both the first base side and third base side cheerleaders wore the same uniform. The logo on their chests also read “UNI LIONS.”
I had a bad feeling. Perhaps the cheerleaders don’t travel with the team. That’s probably it. Unfortunately, I couldn’t see Chun Chun. But the local UNI LIONS cheerleaders were all beautiful and cute, so I had to enjoy them anyway.
The cheerleaders are positioned above the dugout, so the seats I took near the outfield that day were too far away. Reluctantly, I went closer to the dugout and quickly took photos and videos without getting in the way. It’s unthinkable in Japan, but the cheerleaders perform on the audience side of the fence, so they are very close!
In the middle of the game, there was an exchange of cheerleaders between the first and third base sides. I was able to enjoy their performances until the end of the game, with breaks for rest and costume changes. Even though I was there, it was difficult to get accurate information, which was challenging, but I still had fun.
If you ever go to Taiwan during the professional baseball season, I highly recommend checking if there’s a game at a nearby stadium!
