The club was formally founded on 15 December 1995 by Samsung Electronics, becoming the ninth member of the K League from the 1996 season.[1] It was also the first club to be founded in one specific city, a plan which led to the K League initiating plans to encourage its other clubs to forge similar links with local communities.
Former South Korean national team manager Kim Ho took charge of the side from their first season in the K League, and the team finished runners-up in the championship play-off that season. The championship was secured in 1998 and retained in 1999 as Suwon started to dominate Korean football.[2]
In the 2002 season, Suwon also won the Korean FA Cup for the first time, achieving a continental double.
The departure of Kim Ho in 2003 saw Korean football legend Cha Bum-kun appointed manager ahead of the 2004 season, and the club won its third league title in his debut season as manager.[3]
Suwon finished runners-up in both major domestic competitions in 2006, as Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma claimed victory in the K League championship play-off final and Chunnam Dragons won in the FA Cup final, thwarting Suwon's attempts to win the first ever domestic double in South Korean football.
The 2008 season became one of the most successful seasons in the club's history. Suwon achieved a domestic double by winning the K League Championship and the League Cup.[4]
After the appointment of coach Seo Jung-won in 2013, the team started focusing on financial self-sufficiency and reducing expenditures, marking a shift away from reliance on generous support from its parent company Samsung Electronics, with ownership eventually being transferred to Cheil Worldwide, a Samsung affiliate.[5] The club began transitioning from being a "team that wins by effectively utilizing the parent company's budget" to "a team that generates its own revenue and maintains appropriate performance."[6]
Despite failing to win another domestic or continental title, the club continued to be a force in South Korea and Asia, finishing as K League runners-up in the 2014 and 2015 seasons, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the 2018 AFC Champions League. Suwon's last major honour came in 2019, winning the Korean FA Cup and qualifying for the 2020 AFC Champions League.[7]
Major financial changes at the club led to poor results, and in the 2023 season, the club was relegated to the second-tier K League 2 for the first time in its history after finishing last.[8][9]
Crest and colours
Crest
The current crest has been used by the Bluewings since 2008. It depicts the Hwaseong Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a prominent symbol of the city of Suwon. The wing on the top of the crest is the club's first crest and symbolises their will to rise to the sky[sic] of world football.
Colours
The Bluewings' colours are blue, red and white. Blue is the colour of Samsung and also symbolises youth and hope. Red is the symbol of bravery, passion, challenge, vitality and dynamism. White represents benevolence, purity and fair play.
The club house (training ground) of Suwon Samsung BluewingsThe Frente Tricolor supporters' group, formerly known as Grand Bleu, at the Suwon World Cup Stadium
The Suwon Samsung Bluewings used the 11,808-seat Suwon Sports Complex as their home stadium from 1995 through 2001.
Samsung began building the Suwon World Cup Stadium, the current home of the Bluewings, in 1996, but construction stopped in 1998 due to the 1997 Asian financial crisis. With the support of the city of Suwon and Gyeonggi Province, the stadium was completed in May 2001. It was used as a venue for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Based on the shape of the roof of the stadium, fans sometimes call the stadium the "Big Bird".
The Bluewings' training ground is located in Dongtan, a district of Hwaseong.
Supporters and rivalries
Frente Tricolor (청백적 전선, 靑白赤 戰線) is the official Suwon Samsung Bluewings supporters group. The group is known for its fanatical support for the club, especially versus its major rivals, which has sometimes led to violent incidents between Suwon supporters and rival fans.[10]
The club's official theme song is "My Love, My Suwon" by the South Korean punk rock band No Brain. It is based on the song "Little Baby", released in 2003, and Suwon fans sang it by changing the lyrics.[11][12]
The club shares its fiercest rivalry with FC Seoul in a derby dubbed the Super Match. The origins of the derby come from when FC Seoul was based in the city of Anyang, where its previous parent company LG had a major presence. The derby was not only a rivalry between the cities of Anyang and Suwon, but one between Samsung and LG, two of the largest electronics companies in South Korea. The rivalry has continued since FC Seoul's relocation to Seoul.[13] The derby now represents a rivalry between Seoul, the largest city in South Korea, and Suwon, the capital of Gyeonggi Province, the most populous administrative unit in South Korea that surrounds Seoul.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
In the spring of 2005, as part of the club's celebration of its 10th anniversary, Suwon fans voted for the best players in the club's history. The players who received the most votes in each position were named in the club's greatest ever team.[17]
In the spring of 2015, as part of the club's celebration of its 20th anniversary, Suwon fans voted for the best players in the club's history. The players who received the most votes in each position were named in the club's greatest ever team.[18]
↑Lee, Hoon (15 December 1995). "제9구단 삼성 '돌풍 시동'"[Samsung to 'make waves' as the 9th football team]. Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). p.16. Retrieved 31 March 2025– via Naver News Library.
↑Kim, Sang-ho (9 October 2009). "14년 걸려 우승컵...되살아난 '차붐축구'"[Lifting the trophy for the first time in fourteen years... 'Cha Bum-football' lives on]. Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). Retrieved 31 March 2025.
↑"수원삼성, FC서울 꺾고 4년 만에 챔피언 등극"[Suwon Samsung beat FC Seoul to become champions for first time in 4 years]. Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). 7 December 2008. Retrieved 31 March 2025.
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