BTS Returns to Mexico After Nine Years, Kicks Off Three-Night ARIRANG Run for 50,000 Fans

BTS returned to Mexico City on May 7 for the first of three ARIRANG World Tour nights, ending a nine-year absence with a show that blended Spanish salutations, cowboy hats and T‑shirts stamped “Ciudad de México” for an audience of roughly 50,000, according to promoter Ocesa.

The septet opened a long weekend at GNP Seguros Stadium by leaning into the local language and local touchstones. V spoke to the crowd in Spanish:

“I learned a little Spanish. I want to tell you in Spanish how happy I am right now… First of all, I miss ARMY Mexico so much. I love ARMY Mexico so much. So, I hope you love me a lot, too. You are the reason for my life; you are my everything.”

RM, Jungkook and Jimin also offered lines in Spanish; Jimin read a few phrases off his phone and asked the crowd, “You listen to our songs a lot, right?” Jimin asked before adding, “Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I didn’t know you’d be this amazing here. You really know how to have fun. You’re the best. I love you more than anyone.”

Hours before takeoff, j-hope posted a social clip wearing a cowboy hat while a Fuerza Regida track — “Tu Sancho” — played in the background, Fuerza Regida in the background and seemed to cement the evening’s twang-forward wardrobe. Fans affectionately hollered, “Hobi, brother, you’re already Mexican!”

The show itself moved quickly between new and old touchstones. BTS launched with “Hooligan,” then rode a set that let tens of thousands sing along at full throttle to “Aliens,” “they don’t know ’bout us,” “Like Animals,” “SWIM” and “Merry Go Round.” Thousands of Light Sticks pulsed and synced with the stage, bathing the bowl in color as the band worked a centrally placed 360-degree stage.

One of the evening’s more studied moments recreated elements of the South Korean flag on that circulatory set, a reminder that whatever gestures of local fandom the group might adopt, they were still staging a larger, self-aware tribute to home. Later, the set shifted into high-energy territory with “FYA,” “Fire,” “Body to Body” and “IDOL,” during which the members paraded through the stands with flags and dancers as cameras clicked from every angle.

The first night held a couple of surprises. “Boy In Luv” and “So What” arrived like little time machines, producing laughter, tears and applause in equal measure from an audience attuned to both nostalgia and spectacle. And when the official stage fell away, the party did not: thousands who lacked tickets lingered in the streets outside, singing along to the music and watching fireworks, some with their own Light Sticks synchronizing to the show from blocks away.

As the night wound down, BTS closed with crowd-pleasers “Dynamite,” “Please” and “Into the Sun,” then offered one last round of Spanish thanks. “Mexican ARMY are always the most passionate,” RM said. “Thanks to you, I was very happy today.” The group’s promise to bring Mexico onto the ARIRANG route — this marks their fourth visit to the country — now looks fulfilled.

Beyond Mexico City, the ARIRANG World Tour will head to South America later in the year with dates in Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Brazil in October, and is scheduled to wrap in March 2027 in Manila, Philippines. BTS will return to the same GNP Seguros Stadium for the tour’s second and third Mexico City nights on May 9 and 10.