Jeju United FC
Jeju United Football Club (Hangul: 제주 유나이티드) is a South Korean professional football club based in Jeju Province that competes in the K League 1, the top division in South Korea. In the past, the club has been known as the Yukong Elephants and Bucheon SK.
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| Full name | Jeju United Football Club 제주 유나이티드 FC | ||
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| Founded | 1982 (as Yukong FC)[1] | ||
| Ground | Jeju World Cup Stadium | ||
| Capacity | 35,657 | ||
| Owner | SK Energy | ||
| Chairman | Koo Ja-young | ||
| Manager | Nam Ki-il | ||
| League | K League 1 | ||
| 2022 | K League 1, 5th of 12 | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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| SK Sports | ||||||||||||
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History
An original member of the K League founded on 17 December 1982, the team was then called the Yukong Elephants. Yukong was owned and financially supported by the Sunkyoung Group's subsidiary, Yukong (currently SK Group's "SK Energy"), along with Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi as its franchise. The Kokkiri (elephant) was its mascot. The club won the league championship on only one occasion (in 1989).
At the end of 1995 the side moved from the Dongdaemun Stadium in Seoul to the Mokdong Stadium on the western edge of Seoul, as part of K-League's decentralization policy.[2]
Three clubs based in Seoul–the Yukong Elephants, LG Cheetahs, and Ilhwa Chunma–didn't accept this policy, so the Seoul government gave an eviction order to the three clubs. However they guaranteed that if clubs built a soccer-specific stadium in Seoul, they could have a Seoul franchise and return to Seoul. As a result, the three clubs were evicted from Seoul to other cities. The Yukong Elephants moved to the city of Bucheon, a satellite city of Seoul. Mid-way through the 1997 season, the club re-branded itself as Bucheon SK.
Because the city of Bucheon lacked a stadium, they used Mokdong Stadium in Seoul until 2000. At the start of the 2001 season, the team moved to the 35,545-capacity Bucheon Leports Complex.
In 2006, Bucheon SK announced their move to Jeju without any fore notice, renamed themselves "Jeju United FC," and adopted the vacant Jeju World Cup Stadium as their new home ground. Jeju Province had never been represented in top flight South Korean football until then.
On January 3, 2008, Jeju appointed Arthur Bernardes for new manager. On October 14, 2009, Arthur Bernardes announced his resignation due to Jeju's bad form in the K-League.
On November 24, 2019, Jeju lost their penultimate match of the season to the Suwon Samsung Bluewings, which meant the club could no longer avoid relegation to the K League 2.
Franchise relocation history
| Club Name | City / Area | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Yukong Elephants | Seoul, Incheon, Gyeonggi | 1983[lower-alpha 1] |
| Yukong Elephants | Seoul | 1984–1986[lower-alpha 1] |
| Yukong Elephants | Incheon, Gyeonggi | 1987–1990 |
| Yukong Elephants | Seoul – Dongdaemun Stadium | 1991–1995 |
| Bucheon Yukong Bucheon SK |
Seoul – Mokdong Stadium[lower-alpha 2] | 1996 |
| Bucheon SK | Bucheon – Bucheon Stadium | 1997–2005 |
| Jeju United | Jeju – Jeju World Cup Stadium | 2006–present |
- Between 1983 and 1986, K League didn't have a home and away system.
- Bucheon SK held all home matches at Mokdong Stadium in Seoul until 2000, because Bucheon Stadium was under construction.
Kits
Players
Current squad
- As of 21 February 2023
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Honours
League
- K League 2
- Winners (1): 2020
Records
| Season | Division | Tms. | Pos. | FA Cup | AFC CL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 1 | 5 | 3 | — | — |
| 1984 | 1 | 8 | 2 | — | — |
| 1985 | 1 | 8 | 5 | — | — |
| 1986 | 1 | 6 | 4 | — | — |
| 1987 | 1 | 5 | 3 | — | — |
| 1988 | 1 | 5 | 3 | — | — |
| 1989 | 1 | 6 | 1 | — | — |
| 1990 | 1 | 6 | 4 | — | — |
| 1991 | 1 | 6 | 4 | — | — |
| 1992 | 1 | 6 | 6 | — | — |
| 1993 | 1 | 6 | 5 | — | — |
| 1994 | 1 | 7 | 2 | — | — |
| 1995 | 1 | 8 | 4 | — | — |
| 1996 | 1 | 9 | 4 | Semi-final | — |
| 1997 | 1 | 10 | 10 | Quarter-finals | — |
| 1998 | 1 | 10 | 7 | Round of 16 | — |
| 1999 | 1 | 10 | 3 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2000 | 1 | 10 | 2 | Semi-final | — |
| 2001 | 1 | 10 | 7 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2002 | 1 | 10 | 8 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2003 | 1 | 12 | 12 | Semi-final | — |
| 2004 | 1 | 13 | 13 | Runners-up | — |
| 2005 | 1 | 13 | 5 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2006 | 1 | 14 | 13 | Round of 32 | — |
| 2007 | 1 | 14 | 11 | Semi-final | — |
| 2008 | 1 | 14 | 10 | Round of 32 | — |
| 2009 | 1 | 15 | 14 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2010 | 1 | 15 | 2 | Semi-final | — |
| 2011 | 1 | 16 | 9 | Round of 16 | Group stage |
| 2012 | 1 | 16 | 6 | Semi-final | — |
| 2013 | 1 | 14 | 9 | Semi-final | — |
| 2014 | 1 | 12 | 5 | Round of 32 | — |
| 2015 | 1 | 12 | 6 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2016 | 1 | 12 | 3 | Round of 32 | — |
| 2017 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Round of 16 | Round of 16 |
| 2018 | 1 | 12 | 5 | Quarter-final | Group stage |
| 2019 | 1 | 12 | 12 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2020 | 2 | 10 | 1 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2021 | 1 | 12 | 4 | Third round | — |
| 2022 | 1 | 12 | 5 | Round of 16 | — |
- Key
- Tms. = Number of teams
- Pos. = Position in league
AFC Champions League record
All results (home and away) list Jeju United's goal tally first.
| Season | Round | Opposition | Home | Away | Agg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Group E |  Tianjin TEDA |
0–1 | 0–3 | 3rd |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Melbourne Victory |
1–1 | 2–1 | |||
 Gamba Osaka |
2–1 | 1–3 | |||
| 2017 | Group H | Jiangsu Suning |
0–1 | 2–1 | 2nd |
| Gamba Osaka |
2–0 | 4–1 | |||
| Adelaide United |
1–3 | 3–3 | |||
| Round of 16 | Urawa Red Diamonds |
2–0 | 0–3 (a.e.t.) | 2–3 | |
| 2018 | Group G | Guangzhou Evergrande |
0–2 | 3–5 | 4th |
| Cerezo Osaka |
0–1 | 1–2 | |||
 Buriram United |
0–1 | 2–0 |
Managers
Coaching staff
| Position | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Manager |  Nam Ki-il |
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| Assistant manager | Lee Jung-hyo |
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| First-team coach | Cho Kwang-soo |
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| Goalkeeping coach | Ki Woo-sung |
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| Fitness coach |  Guilherme Rondon |
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| Reserve Team Manager | Ma Chul-jun |
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Managerial history
| No. | Name | Start | End | Season(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 |
Lee Jong-hwan |
1982/04/20 | 1985/07/21 | 1983–1985 | Resigned in the middle of season. |
2 |
Kim Jung-nam |
1985/07/21 | 1992/05/12 | 1985–1992 | Resigned in the middle of season. |
| C | Park Young-hwan |
1986/??/?? | 1986/??/?? | 1986 | Kim Jung-nam was called up as a national team manager (1986 FIFA World Cup, 1986 Asian Games). |
| C | Choi Jong-duk |
1988/07/13 | 1988/09/14 | 1988 | Kim Jung-nam was called up as a national team manager (1988 Summer Olympics). |
| C | Park Sung-hwa Ham Heung-chul |
1992/05/12 | 1992/12/19 | 1992 | |
3 |
Park Sung-hwa |
1992/12/20 | 1994/10/29 | 1993–1994 | |
| C | Cho Yoon-hwan |
1994/10/30 | 1994/12/31 | 1994 | |
4 |
 Valeri Nepomniachi |
1995/01/01 | 1998/10/31 | 1995–1998 | |
| C | Cho Yoon-hwan |
1998/11/01 | 1998/12/31 | 1998 | |
5 |
Cho Yoon-hwan |
1999/01/01 | 2001/08/14 | 1999–2001 | Resigned in the middle of season. |
| C | Choi Yun-kyum |
2001/08/14 | 2001/08/31 | 2001 | |
6 |
Choi Yun-kyum |
2001/09/01 | 2002/09/01 | 2001–2002 | Resigned in the middle of season. |
7 |
 Tınaz Tırpan |
2002/09/02 | 2003/05/14 | 2002–2003 | Resigned in the middle of season. |
| C | Ha Jae-hoon |
2003/05/14 | 2003/07/18 | 2003 | |
8 |
Ha Jae-hoon |
2003/07/19 | 2003/12/31 | 2003 | |
9 |
Jung Hae-seong |
2004/01/01 | 2007/11/03 | 2004–2007 | |
10 |
Arthur Bernardes |
2008/01/04 | 2009/10/14 | 2008–2009 | Resigned in the middle of season. |
| C | Cho Jin-ho |
2009/10/14 | 2009/10/29 | 2009 | |
11 |
Park Kyung-hoon |
2009/10/30 | 2014/12/03 | 2010–2014 | |
12 |
Jo Sung-hwan |
2014/12/19 | 2016/10/14 | 2014–2016 | |
13 |
Kim In-soo |
2016/10/14 | 2016/12/15 | 2016 | Appointed for the AFC Champions League matches. |
14 |
Jo Sung-hwan |
2016/12/30 | 2019/05/02 | 2017–2019 | |
15 |
Choi Yun-kyum |
2019/05/03 | 2019/11/30 | 2019 | |
16 |
Nam Ki-il |
2019/12/26 | present | 2020– |
References
- "Official Club Profile at K League Website". kleague.com (in Korean). K League. Archived from the original on 30 December 2013.
- Note:This policy was carried out due to two reasons. In 1995, Korea was under bidding for 2002 FIFA World Cup. The reasons were the KFA and K League want to build a soccer-specific stadium in Seoul and both wanted to spread football to the provinces.
External links
- Official website (in Korean)
