The 2020 K League 1 was the 38th season of the top division of professional football in South Korea, and the eighth season of the K League 1. Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors won their eighth title, becoming the most successful K League club which had the most titles.[1]
 | |
| Season | 2020 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 8 May – 1 November 2020 |
| Champions | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (8th title) |
| Relegated | Sangju Sangmu Busan IPark |
| Champions League | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Ulsan Hyundai Pohang Steelers Daegu FC |
| Matches played | 162 |
| Goals scored | 425 (2.62 per match) |
| Best Player | Son Jun-ho |
| Top goalscorer | Júnior Negrão (26 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Daegu 6–0 Seoul (14 June 2020) |
| Biggest away win | Seongnam 0–6 Incheon (27 September 2020) |
| Highest scoring | Daegu 4–6 Gwangju (30 August 2020) |
| Longest winning run | 5 matches Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors Ulsan Hyundai |
| Longest unbeaten run | 11 matches Ulsan Hyundai |
| Longest winless run | 15 matches Incheon United |
| Longest losing run | 8 matches Incheon United |
← 2019 2021 → | |
The regular season was scheduled to begin on 29 February and to end on 4 October,[2] but was postponed until 8 May due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3][4][5]
On 24 April 2020, the K League Federation confirmed that they would adopt a modified plan for the season, reducing the number of matchdays to 27 including five matchdays of each divided final league.
Sangju Sangmu and the lowest-placed team at the end of the season were relegated to the K League 2 for the 2021 season.[6]
In this season, one additional spot for players from ASEAN countries was added regardless of the "3+1" foreign players rule.[7][8]
Teams edit
Team changes edit
Relegated to K League 2
Promoted from K League 2
Locations edit
The following twelve teams competed in the 2020 K League 1.[10]
Stadiums edit
| Busan IPark | Daegu FC | Incheon United |
|---|---|---|
| Busan Gudeok Stadium | DGB Daegu Bank Park | Incheon Football Stadium |
| Capacity: 12,349 | Capacity: 12,415 | Capacity: 20,891 |
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|
|
| Pohang Steelers | Sangju Sangmu | Seongnam FC |
| Pohang Steel Yard | Sangju Civic Stadium | Tancheon Stadium |
| Capacity: 17,443 | Capacity: 15,042 | Capacity: 16,146 |
|
|
|
| FC Seoul | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | Ulsan Hyundai |
| Seoul World Cup Stadium | Suwon World Cup Stadium | Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium |
| Capacity: 66,704 | Capacity: 44,031 | Capacity: 44,102 |
|
| |
| Gwangju FC | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | |
| Gwangju World Cup Stadium | Gwangju Football Stadium | Jeonju World Cup Stadium |
| Capacity: 40,245 | Capacity: 12,000 | Capacity: 42,477 |
|
| |
| Gangwon FC | ||
| Chuncheon Songam Leports Town | Gangneung Stadium | |
| Capacity: 20,000 | Capacity: 22,333 | |
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Personnel and sponsoring edit
| Team | Manager | Main sponsor | Kit manufacturer | Other sponsor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Busan IPark |  Lee Ki-hyung (caretaker)
|
Hyundai Development Company | Adidas | |
| Daegu FC | Lee Byung-keun (caretaker)
|
Daegu Government | Forward | DGB Daegu Bank AJIN Industrial Co., Ltd. |
| Gangwon FC | Kim Byung-soo
|
Gangwon Provincial Government | Applerind | Kangwon Land |
| Gwangju FC | Park Jin-sub
|
Gwangju Government | Kelme | |
| Incheon United | Jo Sung-hwan
|
Incheon Government | Macron | Shinhan Bank Incheon International Airport |
| Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors |  José Morais
|
Hyundai Motor Company | Hummel | |
| Pohang Steelers | Kim Gi-dong
|
POSCO | Astore | Pohang Government |
| Sangju Sangmu | Kim Tae-wan
|
Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps | Kelme | |
| Seongnam FC | Kim Nam-il
|
Seongnam Government | Umbro | |
| FC Seoul | Park Hyuk-soon (caretaker)
|
GS Group | Le Coq Sportif | |
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings | Park Kun-ha
|
Cheil Worldwide | Puma | Samsung Electronics |
| Ulsan Hyundai | Kim Do-hoon
|
Hyundai Heavy Industries | Hummel | Hyundai Oil Bank |
Foreign players edit
Restricting the number of foreign players strictly to five per team, including a slot for a player from the Asian Football Confederation countries and a slot for a player from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. A team could use five foreign players on the field each game, including at least one player from the AFC confederation.
Players in bold were registered during the mid-season transfer window.
- ^ Did not exist in the regulation of AFC.
League table edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors (C) | 27 | 19 | 3 | 5 | 46 | 21 | +25 | 60 | Qualification for Champions League group stage |
| 2 | Ulsan Hyundai | 27 | 17 | 6 | 4 | 54 | 23 | +31 | 57 | |
| 3 | Pohang Steelers | 27 | 15 | 5 | 7 | 56 | 35 | +21 | 50 | |
| 4 | Sangju Sangmu[b] (R) | 27 | 13 | 5 | 9 | 34 | 36 | −2 | 44 | Relegation to K League 2 |
| 5 | Daegu FC | 27 | 10 | 8 | 9 | 43 | 39 | +4 | 38 | Qualification for Champions League group stage |
| 6 | Gwangju FC | 27 | 6 | 7 | 14 | 32 | 46 | −14 | 25 | |
| 7 | Gangwon FC | 27 | 9 | 7 | 11 | 36 | 41 | −5 | 34 | |
| 8 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 27 | 8 | 7 | 12 | 27 | 30 | −3 | 31 | |
| 9 | FC Seoul | 27 | 8 | 5 | 14 | 23 | 44 | −21 | 29 | |
| 10 | Seongnam FC | 27 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 24 | 37 | −13 | 28 | |
| 11 | Incheon United | 27 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 25 | 35 | −10 | 27 | |
| 12 | Busan IPark (R) | 27 | 5 | 10 | 12 | 25 | 38 | −13 | 25 | Relegation to K League 2 |
Source: K League
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goals scored; 3) Goal difference; 4) Wins; 5) Head-to-head points
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goals scored; 3) Goal difference; 4) Wins; 5) Head-to-head points
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- ^ Teams are split into two groups (Final A and Final B) after each have played 22 matches.
- ^ Sangju Sangmu were a military team and were not eligible to represent South Korea in the AFC club competitions. Additionally, they were relegated to K League 2 regardless of their final position by moving their stronghold the next season.
Positions by matchday edit
Leaders
Qualification for Champions League group stage
Relegation to K League 2
Round 1–22 edit
Source: K League
Round 23–27 edit
The league was divided into two groups, the top six and the bottom six, after the 22nd matchday.
Source: K League
Results edit
Matches 1–22 edit
Matches 23–27 edit
Statistics edit
Top goalscorers edit
| Rank | Player[11] | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Júnior Negrão
|
Ulsan Hyundai | 26 |
| 2 |  Stanislav Iljutcenko
|
Pohang Steelers | 19 |
| 3 | Cesinha
|
Daegu FC | 18 |
| 4 |  Aleksandar Paločević
|
Pohang Steelers | 14 |
| 5 |  Stefan Mugoša
|
Incheon United | 12 |
| Felipe
|
Gwangju FC | ||
| 7 | Han Kyo-won
|
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 11 |
| 8 | Song Min-kyu
|
Pohang Steelers | 10 |
| 9 | Dejan Damjanović
|
Daegu FC | 9 |
 Adam Taggart
|
Suwon Samsung Bluewings | ||
| Ko Moo-yeol
|
Gangwon FC |
Top assist providers edit
| Rank | Player[11] | Club | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kang Sang-woo
|
Sangju Sangmu Pohang Steelers |
12 |
| 2 | Jeong Seung-won
|
Daegu FC | 7 |
| 3 | Kim Seung-dae
|
Gangwon FC | 6 |
| Aleksandar Paločević
|
Pohang Steelers | ||
| Kim In-sung
|
Ulsan Hyundai | ||
 Manuel Palacios
|
Pohang Steelers | ||
| Stanislav Iljutcenko
|
Pohang Steelers | ||
| Song Min-kyu
|
Pohang Steelers | ||
| 9 | Son Jun-ho
|
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 5 |
| 10 | 12 players | 4 | |
Awards edit
Weekly awards edit
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Monthly awards edit
| Month | Player of the Month | Manager of the Month | Goal of the Month | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | Manager | Club | Division | Player | Club | |
| May | Júnior Negrão
|
Ulsan | Kim Nam-il
|
Seongnam | 1 | Cho Jae-wan
|
Gangwon |
| June | Cesinha
|
Daegu | José Morais
|
Jeonbuk | 1 | Cesinha
|
Daegu |
| July | Júnior Negrão
|
Ulsan | Kim Do-hoon
|
Ulsan | 1 | Lee Dong-gyeong
|
Ulsan |
| August | Moon Seon-min
|
Sangju | Nam Ki-il
|
Jeju | 2 | Moon Seon-min
|
Sangju |
| September | Stefan Mugoša
|
Incheon | Kim Gi-dong
|
Pohang | 1 | Adam Taggart
|
Suwon |
| October | Stanislav Iljutcenko
|
Pohang | Nam Ki-il
|
Jeju | 2 | Hong Si-hoo
|
Seongnam |
Annual awards edit
The 2020 K League Awards was held on 5 November 2020.
| Position | Best XI | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Jo Hyeon-woo (Ulsan)
| |||
| Defenders | Kim Tae-hwan (Ulsan) |
Kwon Kyung-won (Sangju) |
Hong Jeong-ho (Jeonbuk) |
Kang Sang-woo (Sangju, Pohang) |
| Midfielders | Aleksandar Paločević (Pohang) |
Cesinha (Daegu) |
Son Jun-ho (Jeonbuk) |
Han Kyo-won (Jeonbuk) |
| Forwards | Stanislav Iljutcenko (Pohang)
|
Júnior Negrão (Ulsan)
| ||
Attendance edit
Attendants who entered with free ticket are not counted.
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 16,808 | 10,535 | 0 | 1,200 | −91.4% |
| 2 | Ulsan Hyundai | 16,352 | 6,973 | 0 | 1,168 | −87.9% |
| 3 | FC Seoul | 13,047 | 5,485 | 0 | 931 | −91.9% |
| 4 | Daegu FC | 7,265 | 3,030 | 0 | 558 | −94.8% |
| 5 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 7,072 | 2,912 | 0 | 544 | −93.8% |
| 6 | Incheon United | 6,849 | 3,428 | 0 | 526 | −93.8% |
| 7 | Pohang Steelers | 6,996 | 3,280 | 0 | 499 | −94.1% |
| 8 | Seongnam FC | 5,066 | 1,655 | 0 | 361 | −93.5% |
| 9 | Gangwon FC | 2,978 | 1,967 | 0 | 212 | −92.6% |
| 10 | Gwangju FC | 1,711 | 860 | 0 | 131 | −95.8%† |
| 11 | Busan IPark | 1,416 | 830 | 0 | 108 | −97.4%† |
| 12 | Sangju Sangmu | 1,080 | 666 | 0 | 83 | −96.5% |
| League total | 86,640 | 10,535 | 0 | 534 | −93.3% |
Updated to games played on 1 December 2020
Source: K League
Notes:
† Teams that played previous season in K League 2.
See also edit
References edit
- ^ Yoo, Jee-ho (1 November 2020). "Jeonbuk show championship mettle in taking record-breaking K League title". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
- ^ K리그1 2020 시즌 2월 29일 개막 (in Korean). K League. 3 February 2020. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
- ^ K리그 개막 무기한 연기..스포츠계 '코로나19 비상' (in Korean). Korean Broadcasting System. 24 February 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
- ^ King, Tom (27 April 2020). "K-League to return on May 8". Sport Business. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ Jackson, Ed (26 April 2020). "Socceroos star Adam Taggart is back playing for his club — and he's already scoring goals". Fox Sports Australia. Retrieved 28 April 2020.
- ^ K리그 개막전, 5월8일 '불금' 전북-수원전 '전주성'서 무관중으로 열린다 (in Korean). Sports Chosun. 24 April 2020. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
- ^ "S. Korean pro football to add Southeast Asian player quota in 2020". Yonhap News Agency. 17 April 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "News: K League to Introduce ASEAN Quota in 2020". K League United. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
- ^ "K League club profiles" (in Korean). K League.
- ^ "K League Official Club Profiles Page".
- ^ a b "K League / Record". Archived from the original on 16 April 2019. Retrieved 6 May 2020.