Hyundai Motor Group launches 'Gift Car Play On Season 2' to support school sports teams with electric vehicles

Hyundai Motor Group announced Monday that it is launching its Gift Car Play On Season 2 campaign to support youth sports teams at elementary, middle and high schools nationwide and promote student athletics. Schools wishing to participate may apply from Monday through Dec. 9. Hyundai Motor Group plans to finalize the selection of recipient schools in March 2027 and provide support on a rolling basis through the first half of 2027.

The Gift Car campaign is a corporate social responsibility initiative Hyundai Motor Group has run since 2010. It has used vehicles to address social challenges across a range of areas — including startup support for vulnerable groups, learning assistance at community children's centers, blood donation drives and emergency safety education. Since last year, the initiative has continued under the Gift Car Play On banner, focusing on youth sports.

In this campaign, Hyundai Motor Group will select 30 school sports teams nationwide and provide each with a team transport vehicle, a training grant and a mentoring program led by sports professionals.

Each selected school sports team will receive one vehicle to ease the burden on teams that struggle to secure and operate their own transportation and to help student athletes travel smoothly to training sessions and competitions. Vehicle options include the Hyundai Motor Universe, County, County Electric, Staria Electric, Staria Hybrid, Kia Carnival Hybrid and PV5, with the specific model matched to each team's size and needs. Electric vehicles have been added to the lineup for the first time this season.

Hyundai Motor Group will also run a sports mentoring program in which athletes from group affiliates' sports teams — covering baseball, basketball, soccer and archery, among others — as well as former national team players visit schools. This year, the mentoring program has been expanded beyond student athletes to include all students at participating schools, giving more students the opportunity to engage in physical activity and explore sports-related career paths.

Mentors will share the experiences and values they have gained through sports and lead hands-on sports activity programs. Olympic archery gold medalist Kibo Bae, a professor at Gwangju Women's University, will also participate as a Season 2 mentor.

To mark the campaign launch, Hyundai Motor Group has released two introductory videos on the Gift Car website and the group's official YouTube and Instagram channels. One video, titled "Special Records We Made Together," features promise cards written by youth sports team athletes who participated last season — cards that capture not only performance goals but also personal pledges for growth and words of encouragement from mentors. The other, "Children Learn Through Sports," introduces the Season 2 concept of expanding mentoring to all students; Kibo Bae appears in it with a message of support for children's challenges and growth.

Interactive events will also run during the campaign period. These include a video comment event in which participants send encouraging messages to youth sports team athletes and share values they have learned through sports, and a "Make Your Own Sports Card" event in which participants use generative AI to create a personalized sports card and share it on social media. Prizes drawn from participants include smartwatches, Bluetooth keyboards and mobile gift vouchers.

"This campaign has expanded its reach — from school sports teams to all students — so that more young people can enjoy sports together and grow up healthy," a Hyundai Motor Group official said. "We will continue to support the dreams of the next generation."

Meanwhile, Hyundai Motor Group plans to support 50 automotive vocational high schools and about 6,000 students nationwide over three years from this year through 2028 through its corporate social responsibility program, the HMG Future Mobility Tech Campus.