2023 K League 1
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(4th title)
| Season | 2023 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 25 February – 3 December 2023 |
| Champions | Ulsan Hyundai (4th title) |
| Relegated | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Champions League Elite | Ulsan Hyundai Pohang Steelers Gwangju FC |
| Champions League Two | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors |
| Matches | 174 |
| Goals | 447 (2.57 per match) |
| Best Player | Kim Young-gwon |
| Top goalscorer | Joo Min-kyu Tiago Orobó (17 goals each) |
| Biggest home win | Gwangju 5–0 Incheon (18 March 2023) |
| Biggest away win | Suwon FC 0–5 Jeju (14 May 2023) |
| Highest scoring | Seoul 7–2 Suwon FC (12 July 2023) |
| Longest winning run | 6 matches Ulsan Hyundai |
| Longest unbeaten run | 9 matches Gwangju FC Pohang Steelers |
| Longest winless run | 15 matches Gangwon FC |
| Longest losing run | 5 matches Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Highest attendance | 45,007 Seoul 3–0 Daegu (8 April 2023) |
← 2022 2024 → | |
The 2023 K League 1, also known as the Hana 1Q K League 1 for sponsorship reasons, was the 41st season of the top division of professional football in South Korea, and the eleventh season of the K League 1. Defending champions Ulsan Hyundai successfully defended their title.[1]
After progressing 33 regular rounds as ever, the league was divided into two groups, the top six and the bottom six, and each team played five matches against other teams in its group.
Team changes
Gwangju FC and Daejeon Hana Citizen (both promoted after absences of one and seven years, respectively) were promoted from the 2022 K League 2. Gimcheon Sangmu and Seongnam FC (both relegated after one and four years in the top flight, respectively) were relegated to 2023 K League 2.
 Promoted from K League 2 |
 Relegated to K League 2 |
|---|---|
Locations
The following twelve clubs competed in the K League 1 during the 2023 season.[2]
| Team | City/Province | Abbreviation |
|---|---|---|
| Daegu FC | Daegu | Daegu |
| Daejeon Hana Citizen | Daejeon | Daejeon |
| Gangwon FC | Gangwon | Gangwon |
| Gwangju FC | Gwangju | Gwangju |
| Incheon United | Incheon | Incheon |
| Jeju United | Jeju | Jeju |
| Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | Jeonbuk | Jeonbuk |
| Pohang Steelers | Pohang | Pohang |
| FC Seoul | Seoul | Seoul |
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings | Suwon | Suwon |
| Suwon FC | Suwon | Suwon FC |
| Ulsan Hyundai | Ulsan | Ulsan |
Stadiums
| Jeju United | Daegu FC | Incheon United |
|---|---|---|
| Jeju World Cup Stadium | DGB Daegu Bank Park | Incheon Football Stadium |
| Capacity: 29,791 | Capacity: 12,415 | Capacity: 20,891 |
 |
 |
 |
| Pohang Steelers | Suwon FC | Daejeon Hana Citizen |
| Pohang Steel Yard | Suwon Stadium | Daejeon World Cup Stadium |
| Capacity: 17,443 | Capacity: 11,808 | Capacity: 40,903 |
 |
 |
 |
| FC Seoul | Ulsan Hyundai | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Seoul World Cup Stadium | Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium | Suwon World Cup Stadium |
| Capacity: 66,704 | Capacity: 44,102 | Capacity: 44,031 |
 |
 |
 |
| Gwangju FC | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | |
| Gwangju Football Stadium | Jeonju World Cup Stadium | |
| Capacity: 10,007 | Capacity: 42,477 | |
 |
 |
|
| Gangwon FC | ||
| Chuncheon Songam Leports Town | Gangneung Stadium | |
| Capacity: 20,000 | Capacity: 22,333 | |
 |
||
Personnel and sponsoring
| Team | Manager | Main sponsor | Kit manufacturer | Other sponsor(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daegu FC |  Choi Won-kwon |
Daegu Government | Goal Studio | DGB Daegu Bank AJIN Industrial Co., Ltd. |
| Daejeon Hana Citizen | Lee Min-sung |
Hana Financial Group | Astore | |
| Gangwon FC | Yoon Jong-hwan |
Gangwon Provincial Government | Fila | High1 Resort |
| Gwangju FC | Lee Jung-hyo |
Gwangju Government | Kelme | |
| Incheon United | Jo Sung-hwan |
Incheon Government | Macron | Shinhan Bank Incheon International Airport |
| Jeju United | Nam Ki-il |
SK Energy | Fila | |
| Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors |  Dan Petrescu |
Hyundai Motor Company | Adidas | |
| Pohang Steelers | Kim Gi-dong |
POSCO | Puma | Pohang Government |
| FC Seoul | An Ik-soo |
GS Group | Pro-Specs | |
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings | Kim Byung-soo |
Cheil Worldwide | Puma | Samsung Electronics Deutsch Motors |
| Suwon FC | Kim Do-kyun |
Suwon Government | Hummel | |
| Ulsan Hyundai | Hong Myung-bo |
Hyundai Heavy Industries | Adidas | Hyundai Oil Bank |
Foreign players
The number of allowed foreign players was kept strictly to six per team, including a guaranteed slot for a player from the Asian Football Confederation countries. Teams could field at most five foreign players at any given time, including at least one player from the AFC confederation.
North Korean player An Byong-jun, who played for Suwon Samsung Bluewings, was deemed as a native player by South Korean nationality law.
Players in bold were registered during the mid-season transfer window.
League table
Positions by matchday
Leader, and qualification for Champions League Elite league stage
Qualification for Champions League Elite league stage
Qualification for Champions League 2 group stage
Qualification for relegation play-offs
Relegation to K League 2
Round 1–33
Round 34–38
Results
Relegation play-offs
The tenth-placed team and the eleventh-placed team played against the play-offs winners and the runners-up of the K League 2, respectively, in the relegation play-offs.
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gimpo FC | 1–2 | Gangwon FC | 0–0 | 1–2 |
| Busan IPark | 4–6 | Suwon FC | 2–1 | 2–5 (a.e.t.) |
| Gangwon FC | 2–1 | Gimpo FC |
|---|---|---|
Vitor Gabriel  51', 76' |
Report | Cho Sung-gwon 59' |
Gangwon FC won 2–1 on aggregate and therefore both clubs remain in their respective leagues.
| Busan IPark | 2–1 | Suwon FC |
|---|---|---|
| Bruno Lamas 85' (pen.), 90+9' (pen.) |
Report | Jang Jae-woong 43' |
| Suwon FC | 5–2 (a.e.t.) | Busan IPark |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
|
Suwon FC won 6–4 on aggregate and therefore both clubs remain in their respective leagues.
Statistics
Top goalscorers
Joo Min-kyu, who appeared in less time than Tiago Orobó, won the top goalscorer award.[5]
| Rank | Player[6] | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joo Min-kyu |
Ulsan Hyundai | 17 |
 Tiago Orobó |
Daejeon Hana Citizen | ||
| 3 | Zeca |
Pohang Steelers | 12 |
| Na Sang-ho |
FC Seoul | ||
| 5 |  Valeri Qazaishvili |
Ulsan Hyundai | 11 |
| 6 | Yuri |
Jeju United | 10 |
| Lee Seung-woo |
Suwon FC | ||
| 8 |  Lars Veldwijk |
Suwon FC | 9 |
| Edgar |
Daegu FC | ||
| Go Jae-hyeon |
Daegu FC | ||
Top assist providers
| Rank | Player[6] | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Baek Sung-dong |
Pohang Steelers | 8 |
| 2 | Leandro Ribeiro |
Daejeon Hana Citizen | 7 |
| Kim Seung-dae |
Pohang Steelers | ||
| Tiago Orobó |
Daejeon Hana Citizen | ||
| Zeca |
Pohang Steelers | ||
| Doo Hyeon-seok |
Gwangju FC | ||
| 7 | Kim In-kyun |
Daejeon Hana Citizen | 6 |
| Hong Chul |
Daegu FC | ||
 Gerso Fernandes |
Incheon United | ||
| 10 | 7 Players | 5 | |
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Jasir Asani |
Gwangju FC | Incheon United | 5–0 | 23 March 2023 |
| Tiago Orobó |
Daejeon Hana Citizen | Pohang Steelers | 3–4 | 20 August 2023 |
Awards
Weekly awards
Monthly awards
| Month | Player of the Month | Young Player of the Month | Goal of the Month | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Club | Player | Club | Player | Club | |
| February/March | Joo Min-kyu |
Ulsan | Jeong Ho-yeon |
Gwangju | Lee Jin-hyun |
Daejeon |
| April | Na Sang-ho |
Seoul | Cheon Seong-hoon |
Incheon | Na Sang-ho |
Seoul |
| May | Paik Seung-ho |
Jeonbuk | Hwang Jae-won |
Daegu | Lee Ki-je |
Suwon |
| June | Valeri Qazaishvili |
Ulsan | Lee Ho-jae |
Pohang | Joo Min-kyu |
Ulsan |
| July | Na Sang-ho |
Seoul | Kim Ju-chan |
Suwon | Kim Ju-chan |
Suwon |
| August | Lee Seung-woo |
Suwon FC | Eom Ji-sung |
Gwangju | Tiago Orobó |
Daejeon |
| September | Zeca |
Pohang | Heo Yool |
Gwangju | Beka Mikeltadze |
Gwangju |
| October–December | Seol Young-woo |
Ulsan | Kim Ju-chan |
Suwon | Ki Sung-yueng |
Seoul |
| Month | Manager of the Month | Save of the Month | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manager | Club | Div. | Player | Club | |
| February/March | Hong Myung-bo |
Ulsan | 1 | Kim Kyeong-min |
Gwangju |
| April | Ko Jeong-woon |
Gimpo | 2 | Lee Chang-geun |
Daejeon |
| May | Nam Ki-il |
Jeju | 1 | Hwang In-jae |
Pohang |
| June | Lee Jung-hyo |
Gwangju | 1 | Lee Chang-geun |
Daejeon |
| July | Jo Sung-hwan |
Incheon | 1 | Lee Chang-geun |
Daejeon |
| August | Choi Yun-kyum |
Chungbuk Cheongju | 2 | Jo Hyeon-woo |
Ulsan |
| September | Park Jin-sub |
Busan | 2 | Jo Hyeon-woo |
Ulsan |
| October–December | Chung Jung-yong |
Gimcheon | 2 | Lee Chang-geun |
Daejeon |
Annual awards
The 2023 K League Awards was held on 4 December 2023.[7]
| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | Kim Young-gwon |
Ulsan Hyundai |
| Young Player of the Year | Jeong Ho-yeon |
Gwangju FC |
| Top goalscorer | Joo Min-kyu |
Ulsan Hyundai |
| Top assist provider | Baek Sung-dong |
Pohang Steelers |
| Manager of the Year | Hong Myung-bo |
Ulsan Hyundai |
| Position | Best XI | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Jo Hyeon-woo (Ulsan) | |||
| Defenders | Seol Young-woo (Ulsan) |
 Alex Grant(Pohang) |
Kim Young-gwon (Ulsan) |
Wanderson (Pohang) |
| Midfielders | Um Won-sang (Ulsan) |
Lee Soon-min (Gwangju) |
Oberdan (Pohang) |
Gerso Fernandes (Incheon) |
| Forwards | Zeca (Pohang) |
Joo Min-kyu (Ulsan) | ||
Attendance
Attendants who entered with free ticket are not counted.
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FC Seoul | 430,029 | 45,007 | 10,236 | 22,663 | +157.9% |
| 2 | Ulsan Hyundai | 345,990 | 30,756 | 5,318 | 18,210 | +108.3% |
| 3 | Daejeon Hana Citizen | 244,274 | 20,592 | 8,377 | 12,857 | +466.4%† |
| 4 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 238,759 | 27,797 | 5,067 | 12,566 | +108.8% |
| 5 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 224,177 | 24,932 | 4,727 | 11,799 | +101.7% |
| 6 | Daegu FC | 208,340 | 12,334 | 6,943 | 10,965 | +71.0% |
| 7 | Incheon United | 169,826 | 15,738 | 5,076 | 8,938 | +69.9% |
| 8 | Pohang Steelers | 164,295 | 14,640 | 3,080 | 8,647 | +81.1% |
| 9 | Gangwon FC | 122,772 | 11,084 | 2,581 | 6,462 | +198.5% |
| 10 | Jeju United | 114,015 | 10,041 | 3,280 | 6,001 | +90.4% |
| 11 | Suwon FC | 98,580 | 9,221 | 1,605 | 5,188 | +64.1% |
| 12 | Gwangju FC | 86,090 | 7,357 | 1,871 | 4,831 | +269.6%† |
| League total | 2,447,147 | 45,007 | 1,605 | 10,733 | +122.7% |
Updated to games played on 1 December 2023
Source: K League
Notes:
† Teams that played previous season in K League 2.