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Founded | 1996; 29 years ago (1996) |
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Region | South Korea |
International cup(s) | AFC Champions League Elite AFC Champions League Two |
Current champions | Pohang Steelers (2024) |
Most successful club(s) | Pohang Steelers (6 titles) |
Website | www |
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TheKorea Cup (Korean:코리아컵), formerly theKorean FA Cup, is a nationalfootball cup knockout competition of South Korea, held annually by theKorea Football Association (KFA). Before the competition was established in 1996, two similar tournaments namedAll Joseon Football Tournament (1921–1940) andKorean National Football Championship (1946–2000) were played. It was renamed Korea Cup in 2024,[1] with the winners qualifying for theAFC Champions League Elite (if they finish top four in theK League 1) or theAFC Champions League Two (if they finish outside the top four in the K League 1).[2]
TheAll Joseon Football Tournament was founded by theJoseon Sports Council in 1921, during Japanese rule inKorea. Youth, student and adult football clubs from various provinces participated. After 1934, it became a part of theKorean National Sports Festival, which was the championship for various sports games and matched Koreans against other sports championships operated by Japanese who lived in Korea. The Joseon Sports Council was disbanded in 1937, due to the Japanese government's oppression, and theJoseon Football Association (currently KFA) succeeded it after 1938, but was cancelled after 1940 for the same reason duringWorld War II.[3][4]
After the liberation of Korea, the KFA founded theNational Football Championship and thePresident's Cup, entered by many semi-professional clubs and amateur clubs from all over South Korea. They opened in spring and late autumn each.
TheNational Football Championship declined after the founding of theK League, because professional clubs and famous players didn't take part in it. There were several efforts to make professional clubs join the tournament,[5] and it became so successful that many top-rank clubs joined the championship, renamed "FA Cup", during 1988 and 1989 season.[6] However, it soon returned to a semi-professional tournament in 1990, because of discord between the KFA and professional clubs. The current FA Cup separated from the National Championship in 1996, and two competitions merged again since 2001. The President's Cup was also abolished in 2010.
The Korean FA Cup took place after the end of the regularK League season, and was usually completed over a short period. Games were played in a single-elimination format, with extra time and penalties if required. K League sides were seeded in the 1st round of the tournament proper, but all matches were played at neutral venues, such asGimcheon andNamhae.
To elevate the status of the tournament, matches were spread throughout the year. The 2006 edition, for example, started in early March, with rounds also held in April, July, August and November. The final was played in December. As in previous years, the competition was contested in a straight knockout format.
Sponsor | Season | Competition |
---|---|---|
None | 1996–1997 | FA Cup |
TG Sambo | 1998 | Sambo Change Up FA Cup |
1999 | Sambo Computer FA Cup | |
Seoul Bank | 2000–2001 | Seoul Bank FA Cup |
2002 | Hana-Seoul Bank FA Cup | |
Hana Bank | 2002 | |
2003–2015 | Hana Bank FA Cup | |
2015–2019 | KEB Hana Bank FA Cup | |
2020–2021 | Hana Bank FA Cup | |
2022–2023 | Hana 1Q FA Cup | |
2024–present | Hana Bank Korea Cup |
Club | Champions | Runners-up | Winning seasons | Runners-up seasons |
---|---|---|---|---|
Pohang Steelers | 6 | 3 | 1996,2008,2012,2013,2023,2024 | 2001,2002,2007 |
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 5 | 3 | 2000,2003,2005,2020,2022 | 1999,2013,2023 |
Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 5 | 3 | 2002,2009,2010,2016,2019 | 1996,2006,2011 |
Jeonnam Dragons | 4 | 1 | 1997,2006,2007,2021 | 2003 |
Seongnam FC | 3 | 3 | 1999,2011,2014 | 1997,2000,2009 |
FC Seoul | 2 | 3 | 1998,2015 | 2014,2016,2022 |
Ulsan HD | 1 | 4 | 2017 | 1998,2018,2020,2024 |
Busan IPark | 1 | 2 | 2004 | 2010,2017 |
Daegu FC | 1 | 1 | 2018 | 2021 |
Daejeon Citizen | 1 | 0 | 2001 | — |
Gyeongnam FC | 0 | 2 | — | 2008,2012 |
Jeju SK | 0 | 1 | — | 2004 |
Hyundai Mipo Dockyard | 0 | 1 | — | 2005 |
Incheon United | 0 | 1 | — | 2015 |
Daejeon Korail | 0 | 1 | — | 2019 |