BTS confirm 2026 comeback with new album and world tour after completing military service

Quick highlights:

• BTS will release a new group album in spring 2026, followed by a world tour.
• All seven members have now completed South Korea’s mandatory military service.
• The announcement was made during their 1 July livestream, their first group appearance since 2022.
• The band will begin regrouping in the U.S. this month to start production.

BTS have officially confirmed their long-anticipated comeback. The global K-pop phenomenon announced that a new group album will be released in spring 2026, alongside a worldwide tour, marking their first full-group activity since 2022.

  BTS attends 102.7 KIIS FM's Jingle Ball 2019 Getty Images

Band reunites after military discharge

The announcement came during a 30-minute livestream on 1 July via Weverse, which saw all seven members including Jin, RM, Suga, J-Hope, Jimin, V, and Jungkook, together on air for the first time in nearly three years. Their hiatus began in late 2022 as each member enlisted for South Korea’s mandatory military service. Jin, the eldest, was discharged in June 2024, while the final group members RM, V, Jimin, and Jungkook completed service in June 2025. Suga, who served alternative duty, finished on 21 June.

  K-pop band BTS's members RM and V react after being discharged from a mandatory military serviceGetty Images

BTS album to reflect 'original mindset'

“We’ll begin working closely together from July,” the group shared during the livestream. “Since this is a group album, it’ll reflect everyone’s input. We’re going into it with the same mindset we had when we first started.”

The 2026 release will be BTS’ first studio album since BE in 2020 and their first full-group project since the 2022 anthology Proof, which became South Korea’s best-selling album of that year with nearly 3.5 million copies sold.

   V, Suga, Jin, Jungkook, RM, Jimin and J-Hope of BTS attend the 64th Annual GRAMMY AwardsGetty Images

Tour to follow new album release

Alongside the album, BTS confirmed plans for a global tour, though exact dates and cities have not been revealed. The tour will be their first since Permission to Dance on Stage, which drew more than 4 million fans across in-person shows and digital broadcasts during the post-pandemic period.

“We’ll be visiting fans all over the world. Please look forward to it,” RM said, as fans flooded Weverse with excitement. The stream drew over 7.3 million real-time views.

Economic impact and global success

BTS' return is more than just a musical event, it’s almost like an economic force. Before their hiatus, the group contributed over £3.2 billion (₹33,600 crores) annually to South Korea’s economy, amounting to roughly 0.2% of the country’s GDP, according to the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute. They remain the most-streamed group on Spotify and were the first K-pop act to top both the Billboard 200 and Billboard Artist 100 charts.