Seongnam FC explained

Seongnam FC
Nickname:The Magpies
Ground:Tancheon Stadium
Capacity:16,146
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Fullname:Seongnam Football Club
성남시민프로축구단
Short Name:SFC
Founded:
(as Ilhwa Chunma)[1]
Owner:Seongnam City Council
Chairman:Shin Sang-jin (Mayor of Seongnam)
Manager:Choi Chul-woo (caretaker)
League:K League 2
Season:2023
Position:K League 2, 9th of 13
Website:https://www.seongnamfc.com/
Hangul:성남시민프로축구단
Hanja:프로
Rr:Seongnam Simin Peuro Chukgudan
Mr:Sŏngnam Simin P'ŭro Ch'ukkudan

Seongnam FC is a South Korean professional football club based in Seongnam that competes in the K League 2, the second tier of South Korean football. Founded in 1989 as Ilhwa Chunma Football Club, the club has won seven national league titles, three FA Cups, three League Cups, and two AFC Champions League titles. Seongnam also placed fifth in the IFFHS Asian Clubs of the 20th century.[2]

In 2014, the club was bought by the Seongnam City Government and was renamed as Seongnam FC.[3]

History

Ilhwa Chunma era 1989–2013

Foundation

In 1975, Sun Myung Moon, the owner of Tongil Group, wanted to found a professional football club in South Korea. Since the Korean Super League was founded in 1983, he tried to find a club to participate in the league but Choi Soon-young, the head of Korea Football Association, ignored Moon's interest due to a religious reasons.[4]

Nevertheless, Tongil Group prepared the foundation of a new football club since 1986 and finally obtained a license from Korea Football Association as a club based in Seoul. Tongil Group firstly considered to find the club in Honam provinces but there was objection from the local community.[5]

Officially, the club was founded on 18 March 1989 as Ilhwa Chunma Football Club (Chunma is known in Korean culture as the winged horse that the Jade Emperor riding in heaven) and the club based in Seoul became the sixth member of the Korean Super League.[6] The foundation ceremony was held in Sheraton Walkerhill Hotel in Seoul. Korea Football Association helped the club to form a team quickly by giving the permission to have six priority picks out of players from Honam regions in the 1989 K League draft. The club has chosen six players, including Ko Jeong-woon and signed Park Jong-hwan as the head coach. The contract with Park was a lucrative deal back then; a signing bonus of 100 million KRW was paid along with 48 million KRW as annual salary.

Early successes

The club was successful from its beginning, winning its first League Cup three years after its foundation in 1992 and winning three consecutive league titles from 1993 to 1995. In 1995, K League clubs wanted to stop the club's third consecutive title and agreed to change the league format back to two stages and the championship playoffs system; however, Ilhwa Chunma still won the title.[7] Seongnam also won the 1995 Asian Club Championship, defeating Al-Nasr 1–0 after extra time in the final.[8]

Cheonan Bound

The club was forced to move out from Seoul in 1996, as a part of the decentralization policy of the league, Ilhwa Chunma moved to the city of Cheonan due to the city council proposition of refurbishing the Cheonan Oryong Stadium into the football-specific stadium and building another sports complex in Baekseok-dong. The club also changed its name to Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma as a part of the policy.[9]

By the end of 1997, Ilhwa was still a successful team. The club reached the final of the 1996–97 Asian Club Championship and the 1997 Korean FA Cup.[10] However, from 1998, Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma went into a slump due to the core players moved out for various reasons,[11] including Valeri Sarychev, Chunma's goalkeeper, due to K League's year-by-year gradual restriction on foreign goalkeepers' appearances.[12]

As a result, they had recorded the bottom of the league for two consecutive seasons, in 1998 and 1999. In mid-1999, Cha Kyung-bok considered to resign voluntarily due to the poor results.[13]

Not only the results on the field, but also the facilities of Cheonan Oryong Stadium were below the standard. On 22 August 1998, Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma had to finish the game against Jeonnam Dragons during the penalty shoot-out, after 1–1 draw in extra time.[14] According to K League regulations back then, teams were required to decide the winner with the golden goal or the penalty shoot-out after the extra time, if the match score is level at the end of normal time.[15] Since the field was not equipped with a floodlight system, they had to finish their games before sunset. Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma won the game by a draw.[16]

On 21 November 1999, Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma was crowned as the winners of the 1999 Korean FA Cup by winning the final 3–0 against Jeonbuk Hyundai Dinos at Jeju Stadium.[17]

Resettled in Seongnam

In 2000, the club moved to the Seoul satellite city of Seongnam and renamed themselves to Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma.The move worked out very well, as the rejuvenated club went on to win three consecutive K League titles from 2001 to 2003, as well as a league cup title in 2002 and an A3 Champions Cup in 2004.

A disappointing 2004 campaign saw them meekly relinquish their title. However, they reached the final of the 2004 AFC Champions League, where despite winning the away leg 3–1, they lost the home leg 5–0 to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad and lost the tie 6–3 on aggregate. The defeat led to the resignation of their manager, Cha Kyung-bok.

With Kim Hak-bum's management, the club bounced back to the forefront of South Korean football in style as they claimed their seventh league title in 2006, defeating Suwon Samsung Bluewings 3–1 on aggregate in the championship playoff final. This was their seventh K League title which is a record out of all the K League clubs.

Before they were defeated by Suwon Bluewings 2–1 on 15 July 2007 in the 2007 season, they went undefeated for 22 consecutive league matches – the third longest streak in the history of the K League.

Seongnam reached the final of the 2007 K League Championship but were beaten 4–1 on aggregate by the Pohang Steelers, despite finishing in first place during the regular season.

Seongnam's former player Shin Tae-yong returned as caretaker manager in the 2009 season, then as manager from the following season and continued the club's success. On 13 November 2010, Seongnam beat Iranian club Zob Ahan FC 3–1 in the final of the 2010 AFC Champions League. This was their second AFC Champions League title and qualified them directly into the quarter-finals stage of the 2010 FIFA Club World Cup. Seongnam finished the tournament in fourth place. Seongnam added another FA Cup trophy in 2011, beating Suwon Bluewings 1–0 in the final on 15 October 2011.

During the 2013 season, there were rumors that the club was going to be sold to Ansan city government after the death of Sun Myung Moon, the founder of the Unification Church. Moon was extremely devoted to football so the Unification Church had been running the club, but after his death, the Unification Church's board of directors saw no reason to continue running the club and stated their thoughts on selling the club to another organization. After the rumor was reported by the press, Ansan's mayor officially mentioned that the city is in a process of purchasing the club from Ilhwa. Estimated number of 800 supporters protested in front of the Seongnam city hall stating the city could not lose one of the most successful clubs in the Asian football's history. Seongnam city started negotiation to purchase the club from Ilhwa. In October 2013, Lee Jae-myung, the mayor of Seongnam, had a conference and announced that Seongnam City Council agreed to take over the club from Ilhwa Sports and will be participating under the name Seongnam FC.[18]

Seongnam FC era (2014–present)

In December 2013, Seongnam City officially took over the club from Ilhwa Co., Ltd. They changed their symbol to magpie, the symbol of the Seongnam city, from chunma, which was the symbol of the Unification Church. The yellow color of their uniform was also replaced with black. Their first manager Park Jong-hwan, who had managed the club from 1988 to 1996, returned to the club as manager once again.

The club played the first home game as Seongnam FC on 15 March 2014 against FC Seoul, resulting in a 0–0 draw. Their first victory came on 26 March, when they beat their bitter rivals Suwon Samsung Bluewings 2–0. The following month, manager Park Jong-hwan resigned after it was revealed that he had been assaulting players.[19] After months of confusion, the club appointed Kim Hak-bum, who previously led their golden age, as their manager. The return turned out to be successful, as Seongnam not only escaped relegation but also won their third FA Cup trophy, beating FC Seoul in a penalty shoot-out.

In the 2016 season, after Incheon's win over Suwon FC on the final day of the season, Seongnam finished 11th and were relegated to the second division for the first time in their history after being defeated by Gangwon FC on away goals rule in the promotion-relegation playoffs.[20]

Nam Ki-il was announced as the club's new manager on 6 December 2017, replacing Park Kyung-hoon.[21] He contributed a lot to the promotion of Seongnam FC to the first division just one season after it was demoted to the second division.[22] Nam resigned his position as the manager of the club on December 16, 2019[23]

Kim Nam-il was appointed as the club's new manager on 23 December 2019 to lead the club in the 2020 K League 1 season.[24]

Current squad

[25]

Managers

List of Seongnam FC managers
No.NameFromToSeason(s)Notes
Park Jong-hwan1988/09/161996/04/021989–1995
Won Heung-jae1990/04/271990/06/271990Unofficial caretaker
Lee Jang-soo1996/04/031996/08/171996
1996/08/181996/12/051996
René Desaeyere1996/12/181998/09/081997–1998
Cha Kyung-bok1998/09/092004/12/011998–2004
Kim Hak-bum2004/12/072004/12/292004In charge in the FA Cup
2004/12/302008/11/272005–2008
Shin Tae-yong2008/12/062010/02/172009
2010/02/182012/12/082010–2012
An Ik-soo2012/12/142013/12/222013
Park Jong-hwan2013/12/232014/04/222014
Lee Sang-yoon2014/04/222014/08/262014
Lee Young-jin2014/08/262014/09/052014
Kim Hak-bum2014/09/052016/09/122014–2016
Gu Sang-bum2016/09/122016/11/202016
Byun Sung-hwan2016/11/062016/11/202016Unofficial caretaker
Park Kyung-hoon2016/12/012017/11/272017
Nam Ki-il2017/12/062019/12/162018–2019
Kim Nam-il2019/12/262022/08/242020–2022
Chung Kyung-ho2022/08/242022/10/152022
Lee Ki-hyung2022/12/092024/03/202023–2024
Choi Chul-woo2024/03/222024–

Honours

Domestic

League

Cups

International

Asian

Worldwide

Season-by-season records

SeasonDivisionTms.Pos.FA CupAFC CL
1989165
1990166
1991165
199216align=center bgcolor=silver2
199316align=center bgcolor=gold1
199417align=center bgcolor=gold1
199518align=center bgcolor=gold1Semi-final
1996198Quarter-finalalign=center bgcolor=goldWinners
19971108align=center bgcolor=silverRunners-upalign=center bgcolor=silverRunners-up
199811010Quarter-final
199911010align=center bgcolor=goldWinners
20001103align=center bgcolor=silverRunners-up
2001110align=center bgcolor=gold1Quarter-final
2002110align=center bgcolor=gold1Semi-final
2003112align=center bgcolor=gold1Round of 16Group stage
20041139Round of 32align=center bgcolor=silverRunners-up
20051133Round of 16
2006114align=center bgcolor=gold1Round of 32
2007114align=center bgcolor=silver2Round of 16Semi-final
20081145Quarter-final
2009115align=center bgcolor=silver2align=center bgcolor=silverRunners-up[26]
20101154Quarter-finalalign=center bgcolor=goldWinners
201111610align=center bgcolor=goldWinners
201211612Round of 16Round of 16
20131148Round of 16
20141129align=center bgcolor=goldWinners
20151125Quarter-finalRound of 16
2016112align=center bgcolor=pink11Quarter-final
20172104Quarter-final
2018210align=center bgcolor=silver2Round of 32
20191129Round of 32
202011210Semi-final
202111210Round of 16
2022112align=center bgcolor=pink12Round of 16
20232139Round of 16
Key

AFC Champions League record

SeasonRoundOppositionHomeAwayAgg.
2003Group B Osotsapa6–02nd
Shimizu S-Pulse2–1
Dalian Shide1–3
2004Group G Persik Kediri15–02–11st
Bình Định2–03–1
Yokohama F. Marinos0–12–1
Quarter-final Sharjah6–05–211–2
Semi-final Pakhtakor0–02–02–0
Final Al-Ittihad0–53–13–6
2007Group G Dong Tam Long An4–12–11st
Shandong Luneng Taishan3–01–2
Adelaide United1–02–2
Quarter-final Al-Karamah2–12–04–1
Semi-final Urawa Red Diamonds2–22–2 4–4
2010Group E Kawasaki Frontale2–00–31st
Melbourne Victory3–22–0
Beijing Guoan3–11–0
Round of 16 Gamba Osaka3–0
Quarter-final Suwon Samsung Bluewings4–10–24–3
Semi-final Al-Shabab1–03–44–4 (a)
Final Zob Ahan3–1
2012Group G Nagoya Grampus1–12–21st
Tianjin TEDA1–13–0
Central Coast Mariners5–01–1
Round of 16 Bunyodkor0–1
2015Group F Buriram United2–11–22nd
Gamba Osaka2–01–2
Guangzhou R&F0–01–0
Round of 16 Guangzhou Evergrande2–10–22–3

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Official Club Profile at K League Website. kleague.com. 31 March 2018.
  2. Web site: Asia's Clubs of the Century . . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130318034901/http://www.iffhs.de/?3370ff73117fe2c0bf23c17e23a09e33b17f7370eff3702bb1c2bbb6e20f72a0cf10 . 2013-03-18 .
  3. News: 성남시민축구단, 성남FC로 이름 지은 이유는?. Maeil Business Newspaper. 2017-02-23. ko.
  4. News: http://www.sportsseoul.com/news/read/35311. ko:[데스크가 만난 사람]"기억해 주세요" 성남시민구단 전환 앞둔 일화 박규남 성남일화 사장의 눈물. 2013-11-25. 스포츠서울. 2017-02-23. ko-KR.
  5. Book: K League 30th Anniversary. K League. 2013. 978-89-963178-4-5. Seoul. 103.
  6. News: Winged horses flying high. https://web.archive.org/web/20160305045214/http://www.fifa.com/news/y=2009/m=6/news=winged-horses-flying-high-1075832.html. dead. March 5, 2016. FIFA.com. 2009-06-24. FIFA.com. 2017-02-19. en-GB.
  7. Book: K League 30th Anniversary. K League. 2013. 978-89-963178-4-5. Seoul. 475.
  8. Web site: Asian Club Competitions 1995/96. RSSSF. 2017-02-23.
  9. Book: K League 30th Anniversary. K League. 2013. 978-89-963178-4-5. Seoul. 178.
  10. Book: K League 30th Anniversary. K League. 2013. 978-89-963178-4-5. Seoul. 520.
  11. News: 박남열, K리그 최다우승자이자 시대를 앞서간 미드필더. 2017-02-24. ko.
  12. News: 신의 손으로 K리그를 평정한 사나이, 신의손. 2017-02-24. ko.
  13. News: 천안-전북 올'왕중왕' 가린다. Ryu. Hyoung-yeol. 1999-11-20. Kyunghyang Shinmun. 26. Cheonan-Jeonbuk to fight for 'King of Kings' this season.
  14. News: ko:'일몰추첨'희대의 해프닝 제비뽑기로 승자가렸다. Ryu. Hyoung-yeol. 1998-08-24. Kyunghyang Shinmun. 27. ko. A 'Sunset Lots' Strange Game - Winners Decided by Drawing Lots.
  15. News: ko:프로축구 무승부 없앤다. Kwon. Oh-sang. 1998-03-13. The Hankyoreh. 18. ko. K League abandons draw.
  16. News: http://news.donga.com/List/ColumnWakamiya/3/all/19980823/7371246/1. ko:[스펙트럼]프로축구 기록의 날, 22일의 「빛과 그늘」. 1998-08-23. 동아닷컴. 2017-02-24. ko.
  17. News: ko:천안'名家(명가) 부활'선언. Bae. Geuk-in. 1999-11-22. The Dong-a Ilbo. 46. ko. Cheonan Claimed The Revival of The Dynasty.
  18. Web site: City of Seongnam takes over football team. Arirang News. 12 December 2013.
  19. Web site: Seongnam FC's Park steps down over assault. 22 April 2014. the Korean Times. 24 December 2015.
  20. News: Gangwon FC earn promotion to 1st division football league. english.yonhapnews.co.kr. 20 November 2016. 1 March 2017.
  21. Web site: 성남시민프로축구단 : 성남FC, 새로운 도전 위해 남기일 감독 선임!. seongnamfc.com. 31 March 2018.
  22. News: 'K리그2 준우승' 남기일 감독, "성남에 기여해 기쁘다".
  23. Web site: 성남FC 남기일 감독 자진 사퇴 . Seongnam FC . Seongnam FC . 26 December 2019.
  24. Web site: 성남FC, 김남일 신임감독 선임 . Seongnam FC . Seongnam FC . 26 December 2019.
  25. Web site: 선수단 . Squad . 13 May 2024 . Seongnam FC . ko.
  26. Web site: South Korea 2009.