Ulsan HD have won the league title five times, most recently in 2024, and the Korean FA Cup once, in 2017. At the international level, they have won the AFC Champions League twice, in 2012 and 2020, and are the only club to have won the tournament twice without defeat.[3]
History
Early years: before Ulsan (1983–1989)
The club was founded on 6 December 1983 as Hyundai Horang-i, with tiger as its mascot (horangi means tiger in Korean). Their original franchise area was Incheon and Gyeonggi Province.[4] They joined the professional K League from 1984 season. While they finished their debut season as 3rd place, the team's striker Baek Jong-chul became the K League Top Scorer, scoring 16 goals in 28 matches. They won their first professional trophy in 1986, winning the Professional Football Championship, which is the origin of Korean League Cup. From the 1987 season, the club moved their franchise from Incheon and Gyeonggi Province to Gangwon Province. In the 1988 season, they finished the season as the runners-up in the league.
Move to Ulsan and rise to power (1990–1999)
Beginning in the 1990 season, the club moved their franchise to Ulsan, where the headquarters of several branches of owner company Hyundai are located at, from Gangwon Province. Former South Korea's striker Cha Bum-kun took the managerial position in the 1991 season, leading the club to the runners-up position in the league in his debut season. However, he failed to win any trophy and was replaced by Ko Jae-wook after the 1994 season. Under Ko Jae-wook, Ulsan won their second Korean League Cup trophy in 1995, which was his debut season as Ulsan manager. Ulsan won their first ever league title in 1996, beating Suwon Samsung Bluewings 3–2 on aggregate in the championship playoffs. The club then entered a long dry-spell in terms of league trophies, although they won their third Korean League Cup trophy in 1998, beating Bucheon SK 2–1 on aggregate in the finals.
Failure to add a major title for years did affect the team negatively. After the exodus of key players like Kim Hyun-seok and a terrible start in the 2000, manager Ko Jae-wook resigned in the middle of the season.
Kim Jung-nam era: Gangsters of Asia (2000–2008)
Ulsan appointed Kim Jung-nam, who had formerly managed South Korea, as their next manager. They finished as runners-up in 2002 and 2003, and started to emerge as a strong force. In 2005, with the return of two key players, Yoo Sang-chul and Lee Chun-soo, they qualified for the championship playoffs. In the play-off semi-final, they beat Seongnam Ilhwa 2–1, and in the final, they beat Incheon United 6–3 on aggregate, with a hat-trick from Lee Chun-Soo in the first leg. They became the league champions for the second time in their history.
The club also went on to win the A3 Champions Cup in 2006, in which they participated as K League champions. Although they lost their first match in the competition against JEF United Ichihara Chiba 3–2, they beat Dalian Shide 4–0 and Gamba Osaka 6–0 to clinch the trophy. Lee Chun-soo became the competition's top scorer, scoring six goals in three matches. They repeated the merciless attacks in the AFC Champions League that season, beating Al-Shabab 6–0 in the first leg of the quarter-finals. These overwhelming attacks they showed in the season gave Ulsan the nickname "Gangsters of Asia".[5]
Ulsan won the 2007 Korean League Cup, beating FC Seoul 2–1 in the final on 27 June 2007. In 2008, the team changed their official name from Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i to Ulsan Hyundai FC.[6]
Kim Ho-kon era: Iron Mace Football (2009–2013)
Manager Kim Jung-nam stepped down after the 2008 season. Kim Ho-kon, who had managed the South Korea under-23 team that reached the quarter-finals in the 2004 Summer Olympics was appointed as Ulsan's next manager.
Kim Ho-kon did not enjoy Ulsan fans' full support for his first few seasons at the club, mainly because of his defensive tactical style and unsatisfying outcomes.[citation needed] The 2011 season was a dramatic changeover; Ulsan won their fifth Korean League Cup, beating Busan IPark 3–2 in the final. Ulsan also finished the season as runners-up in the K League that season. Their unique style of having many players pushing forward in counterattacks earned them the nickname "Iron mace football".[7]
In 2012, the club won the AFC Champions League, defeating Al-Ahli 3–0 in the final on 10 November. In the run up to the final, Ulsan went on an unbeaten run throughout the twelve games of the competition, winning nine consecutive games and scoring 27 goals in the process.[8]
Downfall of the club (2014–2016)
Ulsan Hyundai went trophyless for three years after both Cho Min-kook and Yoon Jong-hwan failed to guide the club to any major honours.
Return of the golden generation (2017–2024)
On 21 November 2016, Ulsan Hyundai hired Kim Do-hoon as their manager.[9] He restored the club status back by guiding the club to the 2017 Korean FA Cup final and winning it 2–1 on aggregate against Busan IPark, the club's first trophy in five years.[10] Three years later, Kim also led Ulsan Hyundai to victory in the 2020 AFC Champions League, defeating Iranian club Persepolis 2–1 in the final.[11]Júnior Negrão scored a brace to secure the club's second AFC Champions League trophy, subsequently qualifying for the 2020 FIFA Club World Cup, where Ulsan finished sixth.[12]
For the 2021 season, Ulsan Hyundai signed former South Korea international player Hong Myung-bo as their manager. He guided the club to consecutive league titles in the 2022 and 2023 seasons.[13][14] The 2022 title was won in dramatic fashion, as Ulsan defeated rivals Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, the winners of the previous five K League 1 seasons, with two goals scored by Hungarian international Martin Ádám in injury time.[15] It was Ulsan's first league title since 2005.
In December 2023, Ulsan Hyundai changed its name to Ulsan HD and unveiled a new emblem ahead of the 2024 season. The "HD" comes from the club parent company 'HD Hyundai', which was renamed from Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings in December 2022.[16] In April 2024, the team qualified for the expanded 2025 FIFA Club World Cup by defeating Yokohama F. Marinos at home in the first leg of the semi-final of the 2023–24 AFC Champions League.[17]
With the departure of Hong Myung-bo to guide the South Korea national team, Ulsan HD hired former Malaysia national team head coach Kim Pan-gon on 28 July 2024.[18] He successfully guided the team to a third consecutive championship title in 2024, thereby establishing a dynasty.[19]
A new era (2025–present)
Although Ulsan managed to win three national titles and a continental championship over five seasons, the aging of the club's key players became apparent through poor performances on the pitch. The club lost its first five league stage games in the newly rebranded 2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite,[20] and was eliminated from the tournament after a 2–1 loss to Thai side Buriram United in February.[21] The team failed to perform better at the start of the 2025 K League 1 season, sitting seventh in the league table with only 29 points exactly halfway through the season after 19 games.[22]
Ulsan entered the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup as the sole South Korean representative but failed to advance past the group stage. Despite notable performances by Um Won-sang, Lee Jin-hyun, and goalkeeper Jo Hyeon-woo, the club fell 1–0 to South African side Mamelodi Sundowns, 4–2 to Brazilian side Fluminense, and 1–0 to German side Borussia Dortmund.[23] Although Ulsan failed to record a win, they still managed to earn US$9.55 million from participating in the tournament, a record prize sum for the club.[24]
Ulsan's continued poor performances, which included an eleven-game winless streak, led to Kim Pan-gon's sacking in August 2025.[25] The club then appointed former South Korea national team manager Shin Tae-yong to the helm in a bid to rebuild,[26] but he was sacked after just two months after the club was assured of finishing in the bottom half of the league.[27] After the season, in which Ulsan avoided relegation on the last day, the club appointed club legend Kim Hyun-seok as their new manager.[28]
The club's main supporters group is called the Cheoyong Warriors (처용전사), founded in 1997.[29] Cheoyong refers to a legendary figure in Korean folklore associated with the city of Ulsan.[30]
Ulsan's on-pitch success led to an all-time high average attendance in 2024, with the club recording 348,119 fans across 19 home games in the season,[31] the second highest in the league behind only FC Seoul. Besides the city of Ulsan, the club's fans hail from all over South Korea and the surrounding Gyeongsang region in particular.
The club's growing popularity has led to continuously increasing revenue, with the club earning a record 48 billion South Korean won in 2024.[32]
Rivalries
Donghaean (East Coast) Derby
Ulsan is one of the largest industrial cities in South Korea, with a heavy presence of global shipbuilding giant HD Hyundai Heavy Industries
Ulsan contests the fierce Donghaean Derby with Pohang Steelers, based in nearby Pohang, another of the most successful clubs in the K League. The rivalry is one between two of the wealthiest industrial cities in South Korea, with Ulsan being a global center for shipbuilding, automotive manufacturing, and oil refining, while Pohang is home to steel giant and Steelers owner POSCO.[33]
One of the most memorable matches between the two sides was played in the final round of the 2013 K League Classic season. Ulsan only needed a draw to win the title, but conceded a goal late in injury time and Pohang won the title instead.[34] Ulsan also faced Pohang in the 2024 Korea Cup final, which Pohang won 3–1 after extra time.[35]
In January 2025, members of the Cheoyong Warriors supporters group protested a move by the city government of Ulsan to change the color of some of the seating of the Munsu Football Stadium to red, citing that red is the color of their arch rivals Pohang.[36]
Hyundai Derby
Since the late 2010s, Ulsan's chief rivals have been Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in a match known as the Hyundai Derby. Ulsan rose to become the primary rival of Jeonbuk, which dominated South Korean football in the 2010s. Once a one-sided affair, Ulsan's eventual triumph over Jeonbuk in the 2022 season led to an intensification of an already heated rivalry that is arguably still the biggest matchup in the league.[37]
Although the parent companies of Ulsan and Jeonbuk share the Hyundai brand, the parent companies (HD Hyundai for Ulsan and Hyundai Motor for Jeonbuk) are legally separate entities.
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.
↑"울산현대축구단". 울산현대축구단. Archived from the original on 15 August 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
↑울산, 6년 전 '아시아 깡패' 부활위한 3가지 조건 (in Korean). Sports Chosun. 20 September 2012. Archived from the original on 9 September 2023. Retrieved 26 December 2015.
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