Awards
Main awards
Best XI
Source: [2]
| Season | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Dates | Regular season: 11 May – 2 November 1996 Championship: 9–16 November 1996 |
| Champions | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i (1st title) |
| Asian Club Championship | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i Pohang Atoms |
| Cup Winners' Cup | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Matches played | 144 |
| Goals scored | 448 (3.11 per match) |
| Best Player | Kim Hyun-seok |
| Top goalscorer | Shin Tae-yong (18 goals) |
← 1995 1997 → | |
The 1996 Korean Professional Football League was the 14th season of K League since its establishment in 1983. South Korean government and the Korean Professional Football Federation introduced a decentralization policy to proliferate the popularity of football nationally in preparation for the 2002 FIFA World Cup, which they wanted to host, so some clubs located in the capital Seoul (LG Cheetahs, Ilhwa Chunma) moved to other cities according to the new policy in this season.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 16 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 32 | 17 | +15 | 36 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 2 | Pohang Atoms | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 24 | 12 | +12 | 35 | Qualification for the Asian Club Championship [lower-alpha 1] |
| 3 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 16 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 28 | 18 | +10 | 30 | |
| 4 | Bucheon Yukong | 16 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 28 | 29 | −1 | 20 | |
| 5 | Jeonbuk Dinos | 16 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 21 | 25 | −4 | 19 | |
| 6 | Jeonnam Dragons | 16 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 18 | 29 | −11 | 18 | |
| 7 | Busan Daewoo Royals | 16 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 23 | 28 | −5 | 15 | |
| 8 | Anyang LG Cheetahs | 16 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 21 | 28 | −7 | 15 | |
| 9 | Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma | 16 | 2 | 5 | 9 | 17 | 26 | −9 | 11 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 16 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 29 | 15 | +14 | 33 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 2 | Bucheon Yukong | 16 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 27 | 22 | +5 | 28 | |
| 3 | Pohang Atoms | 16 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 30 | 26 | +4 | 26 | |
| 4 | Busan Daewoo Royals | 16 | 5 | 6 | 5 | 22 | 23 | −1 | 21 | |
| 5 | Cheonan Ilhwa Chunma | 16 | 6 | 3 | 7 | 35 | 37 | −2 | 21 | |
| 6 | Jeonnam Dragons | 16 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 22 | 24 | −2 | 18 | |
| 7 | Jeonbuk Dinos | 16 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 20 | 24 | −4 | 18 | |
| 8 | Anyang LG Cheetahs | 16 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 23 | 28 | −5 | 17 | |
| 9 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 16 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 28 | 37 | −9 | 15 |
| Team 1 | Agg. | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 3–2 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 0–1 | 3–1 |
| Pos | Team | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i (C) | Qualification for the Asian Club Championship |
| 2 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup [lower-alpha 1] |
Source: [2]
Choi Yong-soo is a South Korean professional football manager and former player. He competed for South Korea at the 1996 Summer Olympics.
Shin Tae-yong is a South Korean former professional footballer and manager who is currently as head coach of Indonesia national football team. He is the first man to win the AFC Champions League as both player and manager, having won the 1995 tournament as a player and the 2010 tournament as a manager with Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma. He is also considered one of the best Indonesia national football team coach in history.
Seo Jung-won is a South Korean football manager and former player, currently in charge of Chengdu Rongcheng.
Hwang Sun-hong is a South Korean former football player and current manager of the South Korea national under-23 football team and manager of Daejeon Hana Citizen. He was the most notable South Korean striker in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Ha Seok-ju is a South Korean football manager and former player. Ha was one of the few left-footed South Korean players at the time.
Lee Lim-saeng is a former South Korean footballer who played as a defender. He is currently the technical director of the Korea Football Association.
Kim Joo-sung is a former South Korean football player. Kim is regarded as one of the greatest Asian footballers of the 20th century. He was nominated for the IFFHS Asia's Player of the Century, finishing second place.
Ko Jeong-woon is a South Korean football manager and former player. He was South Korea's most threatening forward in the 1994 FIFA World Cup. His tireless dribbles made Spain and Germany difficult to keep solid defence, and sent off Miguel Ángel Nadal. That year, he also showed his best performances in the K League, winning the title and the MVP award. He interested Bayer Leverkusen, and negotiated with them in Germany after the end of the season. However, Ilhwa's director strongly opposed and scuttled Ko's deal, and the cancellation became his lifelong resentment. He is currently manager of Gimpo FC.
Choi Kang-hee is a South Korean football manager and former player; he is the current manager of Chinese Super League club Shandong Taishan.
Park Kyung-hoon is a South Korean football manager and former player. Park played for the South Korea national team in 1986 and 1990 FIFA World Cup. He also won the 1986 Asian Games with the national team.
The 2004 K League was the 22nd season of the K League. The previous single format of the league was replaced by two regular stages and playoffs in this season. Each team played a total of 12 matches against every other team in each stage. After both stages were finished, two winners and the top two clubs in the overall table qualified for the playoffs.
The 1989 Korean Professional Football League was the seventh season of K League since its establishment in 1983. The Korean Professional Football Committee was merged into the Korea Football Association again in March 1989.
The 1997 Korean Professional Football League was the 15th season of K League. Busan Daewoo Royals won three domestic trophies including two Korean League Cups in this season.
The 2001 K League was the 19th season of K League. It kicked off on June 17, and was finished on 28 October.
The 2003 K League was the 21st season of the K League. It kicked off on March 23, and was finished on 16 November.
The 1999 K League was the 17th season of K League. In the second leg of the playoffs final, Saša Drakulić's golden goal scored with his hand caused controversy. His handball was recognized as a goal by the Chinese referee Sun Baojie, and it directly determined Suwon's league title. Under the influence of controversy, Drakulić failed to win the MVP Award.
The 2000 K League was the 18th season of K League.
Shin Hong-gi is a South Korean former professional footballer. He played as a left-back for Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i and Suwon Samsung Bluewings. He was also selected for the South Korea national team for the 1994 FIFA World Cup, playing three World Cup matches.
An Ik-soo is a South Korean football manager and former player.
The 1996 K League Championship was the fourth competition of the K League Championship, and was held to decide the 14th champions of the K League. It was contested between winners of two stages of the regular season, and was played over two legs.