Last year, Lee Joo-eun, a cheerleader from the KIA Tigers cheerleading squad known for the "ppikki ppikki dance" in the KBO League, will perform in the 2025 season of the Taiwanese professional baseball league.
Fubon Hyundai Life Insurance announced on the 22nd that Fubon Sports & Entertainment President Joyce Chen visited Seoul to sign an exclusive contract with Lee Joo-eun regarding entertainment activities in Taiwan at the Fubon Hyundai Life Insurance headquarters in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul.
Moving forward, Lee Joo-eun will serve as an exclusive cheerleader for Fubon Entertainment and is expected to participate in the support squad for the Fubon Guardians in the 2025 season of the Taiwanese professional baseball league.
Lee Joo-eun gained immense popularity during the 2024 season as a cheerleader for KIA, thanks to her so-called "ppikki ppikki dance." The "ppikki ppikki dance" is a short dance performed by cheerleaders when a KIA Tigers pitcher strikes out an opposing batter. This simple movement, which consists of raising the thumb and waving the arms to the beat of a drum and DJ scratching, was created to tease the opposing team and fans who have just been struck out.
The YouTube video of Lee Joo-eun doing the "ppikki ppikki dance" became a sensation, surpassing 100 million views. The video, in which Lee Joo-eun nonchalantly stands up to perform the dance after a pitcher achieves a Samjin out while fixing her makeup, gained significant attention online last year.
As the video gained popularity, famous foreign influencers also began to parody it. The New York Times featured the "ppikki ppikki dance" in an article. In its coverage, the New York Times compared the large-scale performances of American football cheerleaders, known for their acrobatic routines, with the currently trending dances of Korean cheerleaders, stating that the "restrained movements of these Korean cheerleaders captured the hearts of fans around the world and generated buzz online."
Lee Joo-eun, who has over 1 million followers on her social media account, remarked, "I look forward to the day I join the Fubon Guardians cheerleading squad, the Fubon Angels, and I want to continue creating wonderful memories with the fans." Chen noted that she hopes more baseball fans will visit the stadium in the new season to cheer for the Fubon Guardians along with Lee Joo-eun, emphasizing that Fubon Hyundai Life Insurance's active support greatly contributed to this contract.