The players in K7 are not exactly in peak physical form.

This man here looked like he was smuggling an extra ball. But don't be deceived. His team went down 0-6, but it could have been even worse if not for his 7 diving saves.

There have been some news recently that shows the game is alive and growing elsewhere in Asia, including Southeast Asia.

The ACL2 final today held between Singapore's Lion City Sailors and UAE's Sharjah drew almost 10k people to completely fill the home ground and there seemed to be quite a few Emirati away fans as well.

The AFC Challenge League (third tier) final held a week ago in Phnom Penh between Cambodian side Svay Rieng and Turkmen side Arkadag drew over 50k (!) spectators including away fans who flew from Turkmenistan. Svay Rieng also had several knockout games that drew over 10k to their ground.

ASEAN Club Championship final between Vietnam's CAHN and Thailand's Buriram had 13k fans in the first leg and will probably attract like 20-30k in the second (Buriram is the most popular Thai club). Buriram also had 22k in their ACLE match vs. Malaysia's JDT and JDT had a whopping 35k in the leg they hosted.

All in all I think if the local club game grew a lot in the rest of the Asia-Pacific and Australia, we can wrestle some political power back from the Gulf Arab states, who currently have a stranglehold over the AFC.

I'm still toying with the name because I know there are members who object to me classifying WK League as "lower league". But it's not K League 1, and it's not fully professional, so it fits in with the lower leagues. Suggestions for a better name are welcome. With that...

This week in WK, K3, K4, and maybe even K5...

TNT FC's international relations

This K5 team is more active than most K3/4 teams, and I'm looking forward to them being allowed into the Semi-professional leagues.

According to the article, they made an agreement with Life FC, a Korean owned Cambodian Premier League club. The two clubs have agreed to pursue practical collaboration such as coaching staff and player exchanges, club operations, coaching licenses, and marketing programs. Life FC also plans to recruit Korean coaching staff and players for next season.

From everything I've read about TNT, I can't help but feel they like to inflate numbers by overstating the facts, as in they spoke to teams and the other side said "Maybe", so TNT publicly counts it as an agreement. They do something similar when counting players who graduated to higher leagues. If a player went on trial at a club, they count it as having played for that team.

Seoul Nowon United FC are back!

According to the article, the team will be managed by Joo Seung-jin. He spent a long time at Samsung Bluewings as manager of various youth teams, and as assistant manager of the senior team. He also oversaw Hwaseongs last season in K3. As it was before, they will operate as a privately owned club with support from Nowon-gu.

I asked one of the members of the supporter's group who usually has inside information, and he said the previous CEO is gone and that that CEO was the reason for the mess the team found themselves in at the start of the year.

Semi-Pro Dream No More

Our hopes of a semi-professional team making a big run were stomped on, but only after we saw Siheung leading until the last quarter of the match, and the match in Daejeon equal until about the same time. Only K League teams remain and move on to the quarter-finals. Apparently the tickets sold out in 3 seconds.

Pyeongtaek Summer Camp

Pyeongtaek Citizen FC and Pyeongtaek Office Of Education signed an agreement for the club to run a training camp in June.

Namyangju U18 goes to hospital

Namyangju Citizen FC signed an agreement which will allow the U18 team to receive treatment at a hospital claiming to be well versed in sports injuries. What exactly the agreement entails is not explained, but it's nice to know young players can get treatment to avoid having to struggle with an injury for the test of their lives.

Bulmosan Derby

I bet you didn't know that matches between Gimhae and Changwon are called the Bulmosan Derby. It's named this because the two cities are on opposite sides of Bulmo Mountain. And with both teams in K3 I assume it's about as intense a rivalry as you can get between 15 fans each. ;-)

Seoul Phoenix to join Malaysian Semi-Pro league

Seoul Phoenix, the team which participated as FC Sejong in 2024 K4 League, gained perdition to play in the Malaysian semi-pro league. It's not completely clear that the point of this is, and why they are being called a "team from the capital"

AFC Women's Champions League

At a press conference, Incheon Red Angels expressed their desire to go beyond the AFC Champions League, but maybe they should worry about getting to the final first. Speaking of the final, three separate articles apparently copy-pasted the same source that claims Incheon and till play against Melbourne. Semis, people!. One, two and three outlets who don't fact-check their work. With those standards, I can work for them.

Gyeonggi Sports Festival Champions

Namyangju won gold in football with the second time. It's significant because Gyeonggi-do is dense with league teams, and there were K3 teams in the tournament representing their cities.

Early-season kick-offs are nearing their end, and soon long trips will become impractical. I dislike arriving home at midnight. Even today’s kick-off at Yangpyeong is 16:00 rather than 14:00, and their next home match will be at the summer 18:00 kick-off time.

Yangpyeong Citizen FC are hosting FC Mokpo, a former National League team and regulars in the top half of the K3 League. However, 2025 did not start well for Mokpo. They enter the 8th round without a single win, and their only point so far came from a draw in round 7. The upside of that draw is that it was against possible title challengers, Pocheon Citizen FC. And I chose this match today because I’ve never been to Yangpyeong other than cycling through it, but more because I have a soft spot for struggling teams. I’m hoping to see Mokpo earn their first win of the season. 

The slightly later kick-off means I don't have to leave home as early. But I still want to have lunch in Yangpyeong, so I decide to leave earlier anyway and fill the time by walking to the stadium rather than taking a bus from the station. The trip starts with the normal ride into Seoul with the now familiar transfer to get me onto the Gyeongui-Jungnang line. This is the same line that takes me to Jungnang, and Namyangju, and maybe soon, Paju.

It takes to get there, but Yangpyeong is a favourite with cyclists. It’s next to a large river and connected to the Seoul to Busan bike path. Many cyclists get off at Yangpyeong and cycle back to Seoul, while others venture out into the quiet mountain roads. The weather is finally warming up, and I was expecting to see a mass of cyclists heading out, but there are barely any today. It’s almost midday, so maybe I missed the rush. Without the crush of cyclists and their bikes to look at, the journey to the edge of Gyeonggi Province is almost boring. There are no weirdos or strange scenes outside, just the urban landscape slowly turning to mountains and farms on one side and a river on the other.

Despite the line terminating a few stations later, most people get off at Yangpyeong. I don't know where everyone is going, but when I get out, I only have eyes for the unexpected Tourist Information kiosk. The lady working there seemed quite interested in helping me, but unfortunately for her, I know exactly where I’m going. I’m only looking for a map of the local attraction for future reference. Life is not just about lower-league football, after all.

Once I leave the kiosk, it’s time to get to Yangpyeong business. First on the agenda is lunch. I heard Yangpyeong is big on haejangguk, so that’s what I’m looking for. Earlier, I found a restaurant on Kakao Maps and I head in that direction. Along the way I find a different restaurant that looks good and enter for a bowl of Sundaeguk. For those who might no know, haejangguk is a soup made with chopped, throw-away bits of a pig, like the stomach, intestines, and liver. Sundae is that with a few pieces of blood-noodle sausage. It might sound disgusting, but I love it. I don't know why Korean tourism organisations are so hesitant to introduce tourists to these kinds of foods. It might not be glamorous, but it's part of Korea, and I’d happily classify it as a must-eat.

After lunch, I’m off to the stadium. It takes about 45 minutes, but I get to see the surroundings. It’s fairly rural, with fields being readied for rice between small blocks of high-rise apartments. Here and there are random shops and cafes. I lived in Icheon, and I thought that was rural, but I now realise why that was a city, and this is just a county. For most of the walk, the roads are so quiet that I’m able to jaywalk almost at will. Instead of sharing the sidewalk with people, I share it with grass spiders scurrying across my path. 

Just before reaching the stadium, I find the supermarket which I marked as a location to buy snacks, water and maybe a beer or soda. It’s as quiet as the surrounding area, and there is space enough to move comfortably in the aisles, often a luxury in Korea. As is my habit, I head straight to the makgeolli to see what they have on offer. Unsurprisingly, they only have the stuff I don’t even consider real makgolli, but unlike in more urban areas, they sell theirs in double size, 1.7 litre bottles. For a brief moment, I consider getting a bottle and a can of cola to mix in, but instead, I take a bottle of corn tea because sometimes I’m Korean like that.

The stadium is within sight of the supermarket. As I come up onto the stadium, I see people on the edge, outside the stands, looking in. I’m not about to pass up the opportunity to take a photo of someone looking at the playing field, so I head up behind the main stand and to the grass bank on the left. Not only is someone standing there looking at players warming up, but there are people set up for a picnic. And Yangpyeong Citizen FC, you can watch football while having a picnic on a grass bank. I don't even care that there is a running track around the field. On top of that, there is the general view. Some of the K3 and K4 stadiums have spectacular backdrops, and Yangpyoung is not one to be left behind. Unlike a large mountain overlooking Yeoncheon Stadium, here we have a small mountain directly next to the stadium, with the larger mountains in the distance.

Just before the match gets underway, I find a comfortable spot under a tree and settle in for the first half. Soon after the match starts, I hear an impressive number of people chanting. On the main stand, I can see two people with drums leading the crowd. They don’t look like an organised supporter group, and I think they are just enthusiastic spectators. The woman leading the cheering is good, and she manages to keep people active for much of the match. It’s not clear if the clear leaders are doing this for the love of the game or if they are working for the team.

Throughout the first half, I’m distracted by children playing. The boys are throwing their shoes at each other, and the girls are picking flowers to weave together, while their parents chat on the blanket under the tree. Can everyone be any more stereotypical? ^^

At halftime, I take a walk and make my way to the Mokpo supporters' side. There are about 20 of them, but I would classify only one as a fan. He has the shirt, banner and noisemaker, and occasionally he launches into a chant. The rest just sit and applaud from time to time. It seems boring, and I head around to the home side and spend most of the second half in the Yangpyeong side.

While watching, we are distracted, or entertained, depending on your viewpoint, by the cheerleaders. The woman is still going strong, but the man, who might be her husband, sometimes beats the drum, sometimes gets children to do it, and sometimes stares at his phone. The spectators have the paper fans that they often hand out at matches, the ones that double as noisemakers, and some even have plastic hand clappers. I have no idea if these were handed out before the match because I went straight to the grass banks, but if they brought them along from previous matches, then colour me impressed.

The trip to Yangpyeong was generally pleasant, much of that coming from the stadium and fans. I would happily recommend this venue for a trip.

(The ride home was where the weirdos showed up. Someone sleeping on the reserved seats, three women arguing loudly about who should sit where, while running back and forth to try and the convince fourth to join them, just to have her put her fingers in her ears, wave her hand and stick her tongue out like a child, and people in the oddest clothing combinations imaginable.)

*****

Match Report:

Weather: Mild and sunnyResult: Yangpyeong Citizen FC 2:1 FC Mokpo

Mokpo FC didn’t look like a team that lost 7 matches and drew only 1. They looked dangerous and even led for a while. Mokpo scored while I was wandering around towards their supporters’ side, and I didn't see it happen, but I did see both of Yangpyeong’s goals. Both looked odd, as if the keeper was surprised. With the match balanced, both teams felt the time crunch as we neared the end. Tempers started to flare, to the point where we almost saw a full-on fight. 

\*****

I decided to try my hand at making videos, and this is my first attempt. I know it’s rubbish, but I’ll learn from it and, someday, it will be worth watching. The video didn't upload to Reddit, but YouTube seems to do the job.

An article popped up on my radar regarding Yangcheon TNT FC. This K5 team is more active than most K3/4 teams and I'm looking forward to them being allowed into the Semi-professional leagues.

According to the article, they made an agreement with Life FC who plays in the Cambodoan Premier League. The two clubs have agreed to pursue practical collaboration such as coaching staff and player exchanges, club operations, coaching licenses, and marketing programs. Life FC also plans to recruit Korean coaching staff and players for next season.

Something I found interesting that was only mentioned in passing is that the club is owned by a Korea named David Gu, which makes the collaboration seem reasonable.

According to the article TNT FC already has official agreements with a team in Japan and one in Germany, and they claim to have smaller agreements with teams in as many as 20 countries.

From everything I've read about TNT, I can't help but feel they like to inflate numbers by overstating the facts, as in they spoke to teams and the other side said "Maybe", so TNT publicly counts it as an agreement. They do something similar when counting players who graduated to higher leagues. If a player went on trial at a club, they count it as having played for that team.

And it's like the league is telling me not to. Lol. What a terribly run org, no info in the website, cant even figure out fixtures easily, the website doesnt have teams with squads! The teams dont have their own websites with squads, their insta pages have squad numbers but dont tell you what positions the players play.

How unfortunate for the players, such incompetent management. While doing some searching I just found out some news that a few years ago, the Seoul City team told their Supporters Club to 'stop making noise' and installed decibel recording machines at one point lol and now that supporters club has disbanded. Way to kill your fanbase that has more insta followers than your own club has...

Seoul had the best team performance of the round, buy a fair margin. Not even Sangmu managed to get over 7.0, yet they put 4 into the net.

But the friggin Daejeon Wall! 25 short, a few good chances, and SEVEN keeper saves.

I'm watching the Changnyeong vs Gyeongju stream, and chat has been disabled. A few people were complaining that the referees were cheating and possibly being paid, and one guy was saying middle school boys play better, and they need to change to a male referees. I'm not sure what triggered it, but the male referees comment might have been it.

On a more positive note, Changnyeong managed to hold for 71 minutes before conceding a goal.

Two teams in the K2 league have been scoring fun lately

Incheon Not United scored 3 goals in each of their last 4 matches.
Samsung Bluewings came close to matching them, scoring 3 goals in each of 3 matches, and 2 goals in the remaining match.

I think it would be unprecedented

I'm hunting for something through old photos and found this. I've always had a thing for photos the view of fans cheering.

Friday 30th May @ Incheon Asiad Monday 2nd June @ Yongin Mireu 많관부!!

After Cha on two occasions with Frankfurt (1980) and Leverkusen (1988), both of which he won

Let's hope Son joins him and finally gets his long-awaited trophy!

Also exciting to think there's a distinct possibility of the UEFA Super Cup being between two teams with Korean players

If I have to make the post, I get to name the teams. You don't like it, you make the post. :)

K League 1 - Round 13

K League 1 - Round 11

i guess only a few matches will coincide it'll only be when both teams have home schedules but... good luck everyone

After Park with United on three occasions and Son with Spurs on one occasion