Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors' predecessor was founded in January 1993 under the name Wansan Pumas. Oh Hyung-keun was the founder of the team, the first to be named after its home location inK League history. However, they failed to raise enough funds and the club went bankrupt before they could take their place in the K League. Many people wanted to keep the club and Bobae Ltd., a local alcohol producer, offered financial support to the club. In 1994, they joined the K League after renaming asChonbuk Buffalo, but ran into financial problems and were dissolved after the final match of the1994 season.
In 1994, South Korea was in the campaign to host the2002 FIFA World Cup, soHyundai Motors, who was in the process of building Hyundai Jeonju Plant,[2] took over the Buffaloes' players and formed a new club called Chonbuk Dinos on 12 December 1994. The K League's official policy is that Chonbuk Buffalo and Chonbuk Dinos (later renaming as Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors) are two different clubs.[1]
Domination in K League and success in Asia (2005–2021)
Since 1994, Jeonbuk had not seriously challenged for the K League title, often languishing in mid-table.[1] AfterChoi Kang-hee was appointed manager in July 2005, Jeonbuk won theKorean FA Cup in December of that year.[1] In 2006, Jeonbuk finished a disappointing eleventh in the K League, however, they won their firstAFC Champions League title.[1] En route to the final, they defeated the Japanese champions,Gamba Osaka, and China'sShanghai Shenhua,[3] as well asUlsan Horang-i, the South Korean champions, in the semi-finals.[4] They then triumphed 3–2 on aggregate overAl-Karamah, the champions of Syria, in the final.[5]
As AFC Champions League winners, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors qualified for the2006 FIFA Club World Cup.[6] They lost their first game 1–0 toAmérica in the quarter-finals on 10 December, however, they defeatedAuckland City 3–0 on 14 December and finished fifth in the tournament.[6] In 2009, Jeonbuk became the Korean champions for the first time after beatingSeongnam Ilhwa 3–1 on aggregate in theK League Championship.[1][7] They repeated the feat in 2011 and won their second domestic title after defeating Ulsan Hyundai 4–2 in the final.[8][9] The same year, they also reached the AFC Champions League final, where they lost toAl-Sadd after apenalty shoot-out.[10]
With significant investment from its parent company, Jeonbuk completed its state of the art Yulsori Clubhouse (club training center) in nearbyWanju County in 2013.[11] Hyundai's generous support and Choi Kang-hee's aggressive play style led to the club dominating the K League for the next several years, with the club winning the2014 and2015 titles.
2016 was a tumultuous year for Jeonbuk. The club won theirsecond AFC Champions League title after defeatingAl-Ain 3–2 on aggregate,[12] but the team came under fire in the domestic front for allegedly bribing referees through a scout.[13] The club was fined and had nine points deducted from their2016 league campaign, resulting in rivalsFC Seoul claiming the title. Despite being champions of Asia, the club's participation in the2017 AFC Champions League was revoked due to this incident.[14]
The club continued to enjoy success in the K League, securing the next five consecutive titles.[15] Additionally, they won the2020 Korean FA Cup, defeating rising rivals Ulsan over two legs to mark their first-ever domestic double.[16]
The2022 season marked the beginning of Jeonbuk's decline, dramatically losing the title to now chief rivals Ulsan[17] by three points. The club, however, won the2022 Korean FA Cup. The following year led to even poorer results, with the club finishing fourth in the2023 season,[18] their lowest league finish since 2008. Jeonbuk also failed to win a second consecutive FA Cup, being defeated byPohang Steelers in the2023 final.[19] The fourth-place finish and failure to win the FA Cup meant the club was unable to participate in the rebranded2024–25 AFC Champions League Elite.
Jeonbuk's decline escalated in the2024 season, with the club finishing tenth and flirting with relegation for the first time in its history.[20] The club narrowly avoided relegation toK League 2 by defeatingSeoul E-Land in the promotion-relegation play-offs.[21]
In December 2024, Jeonbuk appointed Uruguayan managerGus Poyet in a bid to achieve its former glory.[22] In the club's first competitive match under Poyet, they defeated Thai sidePort FC 4–0 away in the2024–25 AFC Champions League Two, including two goals by new signingAndrea Compagno.[23]
Under Poyet's leadership, Jeonbuk decisively won the2025 K League 1 with five games to spare to clinch their record-extending tenth title and the first since 2021.[24] During the season, they went on a 22-match undefeated streak, which is tied for the third-longest run in K League history.[25]
Jeonbuk is the most popular football team and the second most popular sports team in South Korea behind onlyKia Tigers of theKBO League. The club draws over two million supporters[26] from all over the country and particularly from theHonam region. It has almost half a million followers onTikTok, boosted by the international popularity of former playerCho Gue-sung, who scored a brace in South Korea's group stage match versus Ghana in the2022 FIFA World Cup.[27] The club's main supporters group is called theMad Green Boys, who sit at the North Stand of their stadium.
Jeonbuk shares strong rivalries withFC Seoul (Jeonseol Match)[28] andSuwon Samsung Bluewings (Gongseongjeon),[29] the two most popular football clubs of theSeoul Metropolitan Area. The three-way rivalry these teams share represent the business rivalry between their parent companiesHyundai,LG, andSamsung–three of the largestbusiness conglomerates in South Korea. Their rivalry was the most intense in the 2010s, when Jeonbuk came to dominate the K League while Seoul and Suwon declined.
Since the late 2010s, Jeonbuk's biggest league rival came to beUlsan HD. Ulsan became the main club to challenge Jeonbuk's domestic dominance, finally breaking the club's five-year title winning streak in 2022. The matches between the two giants, now seen as the biggest derby in the country, continue to be very consequential for both clubs.[31] In 2025, all 32,560 available seats of theJeonju World Cup Stadium sold out for the first time in the club's history for their fixture against Ulsan, which Jeonbuk won 3–1.[32]
Although the parent companies of the two clubs share the Hyundai name, they are legally separate business entities.
In the 2010s, Jeonbuk developed an intense international rivalry with Chinese sideGuangzhou Evergrande from frequently playing each other in theAFC Champions League.[33] The two teams were the dominant sides of their respective leagues and their most frequent representatives on the continental stage. Several South Korean players and staff members were instrumental to Guangzhou's victories over Jeonbuk and in Asia, as the club and otherChinese Super League teams used their large financial backing to attract South Korean talent.[34]
Guangzhou disbanded in 2025, making the rivalry defunct.[35]
Jeonbuk has played its home games at theJeonju World Cup Stadium since 2002, after the stadium was completed the year before. It has a capacity of 34,207 seats.[36] Their previous home ground was theJeonju Sports Complex Stadium. The club's reserve team, Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors N, plays at the Wanju Public Stadium in nearbyWanju County.
Fans supporting Jeonbuk's reserve team at the Wanju Public Stadium
Jeonbuk owns one of the most modern club training facilities in Asia: the Yulsori Clubhouse in Bongdong-eup, Wanju.[37] The state-of-the-art training center, modeled after the training facilities of top European clubs, includes a large hydrotherapy room, indoor and outdoor training grounds, personal sleeping rooms, a gym, and a cafeteria.[38]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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