By Pearse McLaughlin
In the wake of the 40th anniversary since the K-League was founded the new league season for the K-league 1 kicks off on 25th February, with the K-League 2 starting the following week on the 1st of March. K-League 3 then starts on the 11th of March to round things off and get the three major leagues in South Korea up and running.
Here’s a list of the opening rounds of fixtures in the K-League 1:
Saturday 25th February
KO: 05:00 Ulsan Hyundai vs Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors KO: 07:30 Suwon Samsung Bluewings vs Gwangju FC KO: 07:30 FC Seoul vs Incheon United
Sunday 26th February
KO: 05:00 Pohang Steelers vs Daegu FC KO: 05:00 Jeju United FC vs Suwon FC KO: 07:30 Daejeon Hana Citizen vs Gangwon FC (All kick off times are from the UK time zone)
There are some interesting fixtures to say the least with the standout fixture got to be current champions, Ulsan Hyundai up against record holders Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. We also have K-League 2 champions Gwangju FC who will be looking to maintain their status as a topflight club again as they have bounced straight back up following relegation from the K-League 1 in 2021.
Those are the first of a 33-league game season which will run from end of February and will run until December. There will be fewer midweek games compared to 2022 with most weeks having one game per week. Also, you must factor in the Asian Champions League (ACL) extra 6 game minimum spanning from August until February/March. The ACL will commence with the ACL Play offs and Group stage games starting in August/September time.
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors are going all out to reclaim their title and have done so by bringing in a big signing to the K-League 1 with the transfer of Lee Dong-Jun which in my opinion is a statement signing. Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors signed Lee Dong-Jun for a fee of 700k euros from Bundesliga side Hertha Berlin and is the direct replacement for Modou Barrow who has joined Saudi Arabian side Al-Ahli SFC for an undisclosed fee. Brilliant deal for both parties as Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors have got a player 5 years his senior, South Korean international and now back in the K-League 1 having played in one of the top five leagues in Europe. Keeping a hold of Golden boot winner Cho Gue-Sung, who had a breakout season in the K-League 1 last term was a masterstroke. He carried that form into the 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup scoring 2 goals against Ghana in the group stage and helped South Korea progress into the last 16 of the FIFA World Cup.
FC Seoul had a disappointing campaign last term led by captain Ki Sung-Yung where they finished last campaign 9th in the table just above the drop zone. Out of 38 games they managed a measly 11 wins, 13 draws, 14 losses and a goal difference of -4. Goal scoring was an issue for them last season scoring only 43 goals in 38 games as a team which isn’t good enough. Potentially they have a whole new frontline that will project them up the table and challenging in the top six come the end of the season. They recruited striker Stanislav Iljutcenko from Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the summer for an undisclosed fee, World Cup star Hwang Ui-Jo on loan from Nottingham Forrest and tricky winger Willyan who joins on loan from Daejeon Hana Citizen.
The biggest departure of the winter window which is still open in South Korea was the signing of 21-year-old striker Oh Hyeon-Gyu who has joined Scottish champions Celtic FC for a fee of 2.8m euros from Suwon Samsung Bluewings. Suwon Samsung Bluewings struggled last season finishing one place below FC Seoul with similar points tally and goal difference. It will be interesting to see how Suwon Samsung Bluewings reinvest the money from the sale of Oh Hyeon-Gyu.
The K-League 2 season kicks off on the 1st of March:
Wednesday 1st March
KO: 04:30 Jeonam Dragons vs FC Anyang KO: 04:30 Cheonan City FC vs Busan IPark KO: 04:30 Gyeongnam vs Bucheon FC 1995 KO: 07:00 Asan Mugunghwa FC vs Gimcheon Sangju Sangmu FC KO: 07:00 Seoul E-Land FC vs Chungbuk Cheongju FC KO: 07:00 Seongnam FC vs Ansan Greeners FC
There are some great match ups for the opening week of the season with standout fixture got to be Seongnam FC up against Ansan Greeners FC. All eyes will be on Seongnam FC and will se if they can bounce straight back up like current champions and K-League 1 side Gwangju FC or will it be a tough campaign for them.
These are the first match ups of a 39-game season with the 13 sides due to play each other 3 times. It will be interesting to see how the newly promoted sides in Chungbuk Cheongju FC and Cheonan City FC get on.
Last season’s joint golden boot winner with 19 goals Tiago Orobó has left Gyeongnam to join K-League 1 side Daejeon Hana Citizen for an undisclosed fee. Fellow golden boot winner was Yu Kang-Hyun, and he has also joined Daejeon Hana Citizen from Asan Mugunghwa FC for an undisclosed fee. It will be interesting to see if both strikers can translate their prolific form in the K-League 2 into the K-League 1 with Daejeon Hana Citizen.
The K-League 3 season kicks off on the 11th of March:
Saturday 11th March
KO: 05:00 Busan Kyotong vs Chuncheon KO: 05:00 Hwaseong vs Gangneung KO: 05:00 Pocheon vs Gyeongju KHNP KO: 05:00 Ulsan Citizen vs Changwon KO: 06:00 Siheung Citizen vs Daejeon Korail
Sunday 12th March
KO: 04:00 Yangju Citizen vs Yangpyeong KO: 05:00 Gimhae vs Paju Citizen KO: 06:00 Goyang KH vs Mokpo
The standout fixture is the opening match between Busan Kyotong vs Chuncheon which will see last season’s golden boot winner Shin Young-Jun who notched 16 goals for Busan Kyotong. I’ll also be following along closely to Gimhae as I will be moving there next Month. They kick off their campaign against Paju Citizen.
The current champions Changwon will be looking to flex their muscles and start the campaign strong as they travel away to Ulsan Citizen for the opening fixture of the 2023 K-League 3 season.
This is a 30-league game season with the 16 teams playing each other twice throughout the season 2023. K-League 3 or as it was formerly known as Korea National League (KNL) before its rebranding in 2020. K-League 3 is the third tier of the South Korean football league system and is the semi-professional league of South Korea.
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