K League
| 180px | |
| Country |  South Korea |
|---|---|
| Confederation | AFC |
| Founded | 1983 |
| Divisions | K League Classic K League Challenge |
| Number of teams | 23 |
| Domestic cup(s) | FA Cup |
| International cup(s) | AFC Champions League |
| Current champions | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (Classic) Sangju Sangmu (Challenge) |
| Most championships | Seongnam FC (7) |
| Website | Official Website |
K League (Korea Professional Football League) is South Korea's professional association football league including first division K League Classic and second division K League Challenge.[1][2] The fact that both the first and second divisions have very similar names has caused some degree of confusion and controversy[3]
Contents
History
The K League Classic was founded in 1983 as the Korean Super League, with five member clubs. The initial five clubs were Hallelujah FC, Yukong Elephants, POSCO Dolphins, Daewoo Royals, Kookmin Bank FC. Hallelujah FC won the inaugural title, finishing one point ahead of Daewoo Royals to lift the crown.
In 1998, Korea's football league was reformed and renamed the K League. (K League was official orthography by 2012) Since its creation, the league has expanded from an initial 5 to 16 clubs. Of the 5 inaugural clubs, only Yukong Elephants, POSCO Dolphins, and Daewoo Royals remain in the K League; Kookmin Bank FC dropped out of the league at the end of 1984, and Hallelujah FC followed the season after.
In 2013, K League introduced the division system. The first division's name is K League Classic, the second division's name is K League Challenge and the comprehensive brand name is K League.
Structure
Below the K League Classic, there is the K League Challenge, and below the K League Challenge, there is the National League, a closed semi-professional/amateur league with fifteen clubs, established in 2003. The fourth level of football in Korea is the K3 League.
There was no official system of promotion and relegation. However, beginning in 2013, the champions of K League Challenge is eligible for promotion to the K League Classic, provided they had met certain criteria. In 2012 season, two teams from K League Classic was relegated to K League Challenge, and in 2013, two teams will be relegated to K League Challenge, and 11th placed team from K League Classic and the first placed team from K League Challenge will have a relegation play-off.
- First Division – K League Classic
- Second Division – K League Challenge
Clubs
Current K League Clubs
- First Division – K League Classic – 12 clubs
- Second Division – K League Challenge – 11 clubs
All-time K League Clubs
There have been a total of 19 member clubs in the history of the K League – those clubs are listed below with their current names (where applicable):
- K League's principle of official statistics is that final club succeeds to predecessor club's history & records.
- Clubs in italic no longer exist.
| Club (Duration) | Owner(s) | Sponsor(s) | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| POSCO FC (1973–1983) POSCO Dolphins (1983–1984) POSCO Atoms (1985–1994) Pohang Atoms (1995–1996) Pohang Steelers (1997–present) |
POSCO | Founded as a Semi-Professional FC on April 1973 Transferred into a Professional FC on February 1984 |
|
| Hallelujah FC (1983–1985) | defunct Shindongah Group | Inauguration Date – 20 December 1980 | |
| Yukong Elephants (1983–1995) Puchon Yukong (1996–1997.09) Puchon SK (1997.10–2000) Bucheon SK (2001–2005) Jeju United (2006–present) |
SK Energy[1] in SK Group | Inauguration Date – 17 December 1982 | |
| Saehan Motors FC (1979–1980) Daewoo FC (1980–1983) Daewoo Royals (1983–1995) Pusan Daewoo Royals (1996–1999) Pusan i.cons (2000–2002.07) Pusan I'Cons (2002.07–2004) Busan I'Park (2005–2011) Busan Ipark (2012–present) |
defunct Daewoo Group (1983–1999) Hyundai Development Company (2000–present) |
Founded as a Semi-Professional FC in 1979 Refounded as a Professional FC Inauguration Date – 3 December 1983 |
|
| Kookmin Bank FC (1983–1984) | Kookmin Bank | Played as a Semi-Professional FC | |
| Hyundai Horang-i (1984–1995) Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i (1996–1998) Ulsan Hyundai Horangi (1999–2007) Ulsan Hyundai (2008–present) |
Hyundai Motor Company in Hyundai Group (1984–1997) Hyundai Heavy Industries in Hyundai Heavy Industries Group (1998–present) |
Inauguration Date – 6 December 1983 | |
| Lucky-Goldstar Hwangso (1984–1990) LG Cheetahs (1991–1995) Anyang LG Cheetahs (1996–2003) FC Seoul (2004–present) |
LG Group (1984–2004) GS Group[2] (2004.06–present) |
Inauguration Date – 22 December 1983 | |
| Hanil Bank FC (1984–1986) | Hanil Bank[3] | Played as a Semi-Professional FC | |
| Ilhwa Chunma (1989–1995) Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma (1996–1999) Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma (2000–2013) Seongnam FC (2014–present) |
Ilhwa in Tongil Group (1989–2013) Government of Seongnam Citizen Stockholder (2014–present) |
Inauguration Date – 18 March 1989 | |
| Chonbuk Buffalo (1994) | Bobae Soju (1994) | Inauguration Date – 1993 Dissolution Date – 1994 |
|
| Chonbuk Dinos (1995–1996) Chonbuk Hyundai Dinos (1997–1999) Chonbuk Hyundai Motors (2000–2005) Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (2006–present) |
Consortium of Hyunyang and Hyundai Motor Company in Hyundai Group (1995–1999.05) Hyundai Motor Company in Hyundai Motor Group (1999.05–present) |
Inauguration Date – 12 December 1994 | |
| Chunnam Dragons (1995–2013) Jeonnam Dragons (2014–present) |
POSCO | Inauguration Date – 16 December 1994 | |
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings (1996–present) | Samsung Electronics in Samsung Group (1996–2014.03) Cheil Worldwide in Samsung Group (2014.04-present) |
Samsung Electronics | Inauguration Date – 15 December 1995 |
| Taejon Citizen (1997–2002) Daejeon Citizen (2003–present) |
Government of Daejeon Citizen Stockholder |
Hana Bank | Inauguration Date – 12 March 1997 |
| Daegu FC (2003–present) | Government of Daegu Citizen Stockholder |
Daegu Bank | Inauguration Date – 19 March 2003 |
| Incheon United (2004–present) | Government of Incheon Citizen Stockholder |
Shinhan Bank Incheon International Airport |
Inauguration Date – 1 March 2004 |
| Gyeongnam FC (2006–present) | Government of Gyeongsangnam-do Citizen Stockholder |
DSME Gyeongnam Bank |
Inauguration Date – 17 January 2006 |
| Gangwon FC (2009–present) | Government of Gangwon-do Citizen Stockholder |
High1 Resort | Inauguration Date – 18 December 2008 |
| Gwangju FC (2011–present) | Government of Gwangju Citizen Stockholder |
Gwangju Bank | Inauguration Date – 16 December 2010 |
| Sangju Sangmu Phoenix (2011–2012) Sangju Sangmu (2013–present) |
Government of Sangju Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps |
Inauguration Date – 26 February 2011 | |
| Police FC (2013) Ansan Police FC (2014–present) |
Government of Ansan Moogoonghwa Athletic Club in Korean National Police University |
Founded as a Semi-Professional FC 29 March 1996 Transferred into a Professional FC and joined K League Challenge in 2013 |
|
| Goyang Hi FC (2013–present) | Founded as a Semi-Professional FC in 1999 Transferred into a Professional FC and joined K League Challenge in 2013 |
||
| Chungju Hummel (2013–present) | Hummel Korea | Founded as a Semi-Professional FC 9 December 1999 Transferred into a Professional FC and joined K League Challenge in 2013 |
|
| Suwon FC (2013–present) | Government of Suwon Citizen Stockholder |
Founded as a Semi-Professional FC 15 March 2003 Transferred into a Professional FC in 2013 Joined K League Challenge |
|
| Bucheon FC 1995 (2013–present) | Government of Bucheon Citizen Stockholder |
Founded as Amateur FC on 1 December 2007 Transferred into a Professional FC and joined K League Challenge in 2013 |
|
| FC Anyang (2013–present) | Government of Anyang Citizen Stockholder |
Inauguration Date – 2 February 2013 Joined K League Challenge in 2013 |
|
| Seoul E-Land FC (2015–present) | E-Land Group | Inauguration Date – 22 August 2014 Joined K League Challenge in 2015 |
[1] Yukong renamed to SK Energy
[2] GS Group is separated from LG Group
[3] Hanil Bank is merged by Woori Bank
Note : Horang-i means tiger, Hwangso means bull, Chunma means pegasus, Bulsajo means phoenix.
Champions
- For details on K League Champions, see List of K League champions.
- Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma are the most successful club in terms of championship victories, having lifted the title on no less than seven occasions.
The roll-call of champions is as follows (present-date names included where teams have changed names previously): - K League's principle of official statistics is that final club succeeds to predecessor club's history & records.
Titles By Season
K League Classic (1983–present)
K League Challenge (2013–present)
| Season | Champions | Runners-up |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Sangju Sangmu | Police FC |
| 2014 | Daejeon Citizen | Gwangju FC |
| 2015 | Sangju Sangmu | Suwon FC |
Titles By Club
Top Division
| Club | Champions | Runners-up | Winning Seasons | Runners-up Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seongnam FC |
|
|
1993, 1994, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006 | 1992, 2007, 2009 |
| FC Seoul |
|
|
1985, 1990, 2000, 2010, 2012 | 1986, 1989, 1993, 2001, 2008 |
| Pohang Steelers |
|
|
1986, 1988, 1992, 2007, 2013 | 1985, 1987, 1995, 2004 |
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
|
|
1998, 1999, 2004, 2008 | 1996, 2006, 2014, 2015 |
| Busan IPark |
|
|
1984, 1987, 1991, 1997 | 1983, 1990, 1999 |
| Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors |
|
|
2009, 2011, 2014, 2015 | 2012 |
| Ulsan Hyundai |
|
|
1996, 2005 | 1988, 1991, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2011, 2013 |
| Jeju United |
|
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1989 | 1984, 1994, 2000, 2010 |
| Hallelujah FC |
|
|
1983 | |
| Jeonnam Dragons |
|
|
1997 | |
| Incheon United |
|
|
2005 |
Second Division
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