Ulsan Hyundai FC
Ulsan Hyundai FC (Korean: 울산 현대 축구단) is a South Korean professional football club based in Ulsan, owned by the South Korean corporation Hyundai Heavy Industries. Established on 6 December 1983, they joined the K League in 1984 as Hyundai Horang-i. The home ground of the team is Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium.
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| Full name | Ulsan Hyundai Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | 호랑이 (Tigers) | ||
| Founded | 1983, as Hyundai Horang-i | ||
| Ground | Ulsan Munsu Football Stadium | ||
| Capacity | 44,102 | ||
| Owner | Hyundai Heavy Industries | ||
| Chairman | Chung Mong-joon | ||
| Manager | Hong Myung-bo | ||
| League | K League 1 | ||
| 2021 | K League 1, 2nd of 12 | ||
| Website | Club website | ||
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History
Early years: before Ulsan (1983–1989)
Ulsan Hyundai was established on 6 December 1983, as Hyundai Horang-i, with Horangi (Horangi means tiger in Korean) as its mascot. Their original franchise area was Incheon and Gyeonggi Province.[1] 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 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 legendary striker Cha Bum-kun took the managerial position from 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 aggregate in the championship playoffs. Ulsan 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 aggregate in the finals.
Two Kims era (2000–2013)
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 Korean national football team, as their next manager. They finished 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 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, which they participated as K-League champions. Although they lost their first match in the competition against JEF United Ichihara Chiba 2–3, 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 6 goals in 3 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".[2]
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.[3]
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 national under-23 football 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. 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. Ulsan's unique style of having many players pushing forward in counterattacks earned them the nickname "Iron mace football".[4]
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 12 games of the competition, winning nine consecutive games and scoring 27 goals in the process.[5]
Players
Current squad
- As of 22 February 2022
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Club officials
- Manager: Hong Myung-bo
- Assistant Manager: Myeong Jae-yong, Kim In-soo, Byun Jae-seob
- Goalkeeping Coach: Kim Beom-soo
- Physio: Tsukoshi Tomo
- U-18 Team Head Coach: Park Ki-wook
- U-15 Team Head Coach: Kim Baek-kwan
- Video Analyst: Satoshi Shimizu
Managers
| # | Name | From | To | Season(s) | Honours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Moon Jung-sik |
1983/07/12 | 1986/04/22 | 1984–1986 | |
| Cho Chung-yun |
1986/04/22 | 1986/12/?? | 1986 | Professional Football Championship | |
| 2 | 1986/12/?? | 1987/12/30 | 1987 | ||
| 3 | Kim Ho |
1987/12/30 | 1990/11/19 | 1988–1990 | |
| 4 | Cha Bum-kun |
1990/11/23 | 1994/11/27 | 1991–1994 | |
| 5 | Ko Jae-wook |
1994/11/30 | 2000/06/12 | 1995–2000 | 1995 Korean League Cup 1996 K League 1998 Korean League Cup |
| C | Chung Jong-soo |
2000/06/12 | 2000/08/21 | 2000 | |
| 6 | Kim Jung-nam |
2000/08/22 | 2008/12/25 | 2000–2008 | 2005 K League 2007 Korean League Cup |
| 7 | Kim Ho-kon |
2008/12/26 | 2013/12/04 | 2009–2013 | 2011 Korean League Cup 2012 AFC Champions League |
| 8 | Cho Min-kook |
2013/12/06 | 2014/12/01 | 2014 | |
| 9 | Yoon Jung-hwan |
2014/12/01 | 2016/11/14 | 2015–2016 | |
| 10 | Kim Do-hoon |
2016/11/21 | 2020/12/20 | 2017–2020 | 2017 Korean FA Cup 2020 AFC Champions League |
| 11 | Hong Myung-bo |
2020/12/24 | 2021– |
Kits
Honours
League
Cups
- Winners: 2006
- Runners-up: 1989, 1999[lower-alpha 1]
- Runners-up: 1990[lower-alpha 1]
- Reserve team
Records
| Season | Division | Tms. | Pos. | FA Cup | AFC CL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 1 | 8 | 3 | — | — |
| 1985 | 1 | 8 | 4 | — | — |
| 1986 | 1 | 6 | 6 | — | — |
| 1987 | 1 | 5 | 4 | — | — |
| 1988 | 1 | 5 | 2 | — | — |
| 1989 | 1 | 6 | 6 | — | — |
| 1990 | 1 | 6 | 5 | — | — |
| 1991 | 1 | 6 | 2 | — | — |
| 1992 | 1 | 6 | 3 | — | — |
| 1993 | 1 | 6 | 3 | — | — |
| 1994 | 1 | 7 | 4 | — | — |
| 1995 | 1 | 8 | 2 | — | — |
| 1996 | 1 | 9 | 1 | Semi-final | — |
| 1997 | 1 | 10 | 3 | Quarter-final | — |
| 1998 | 1 | 10 | 2 | Runners-up | Round of 16 |
| 1999 | 1 | 10 | 6 | Semi-final | — |
| 2000 | 1 | 10 | 10 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2001 | 1 | 10 | 6 | Semi-final | — |
| 2002 | 1 | 10 | 2 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2003 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Semi-final | — |
| 2004 | 1 | 13 | 4 | Semi-final | — |
| 2005 | 1 | 13 | 1 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2006 | 1 | 14 | 5 | Round of 32 | Semi-final |
| 2007 | 1 | 14 | 4 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2008 | 1 | 14 | 3 | Quarter-final | — |
| 2009 | 1 | 15 | 8 | Round of 32 | Group stage |
| 2010 | 1 | 15 | 5 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2011 | 1 | 16 | 2 | Semi-final | — |
| 2012 | 1 | 16 | 5 | Semi-final | Winners |
| 2013 | 1 | 14 | 2 | Round of 16 | — |
| 2014 | 1 | 12 | 6 | Round of 16 | Group stage |
| 2015 | 1 | 12 | 7 | Semi-final | — |
| 2016 | 1 | 12 | 4 | Semi-final | — |
| 2017 | 1 | 12 | 4 | Winners | Group stage |
| 2018 | 1 | 12 | 3 | Runners-up | Round of 16 |
| 2019 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Round of 32 | Round of 16 |
| 2020 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Runners-up | Winners |
| 2021 | 1 | 12 | 2 | Semi-final | Semi-final |
- Key
- Tms. = Number of teams
- Pos. = Position in league
AFC Champions League record
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- Played at a neutral venue.
References
- "울산현대축구단". 울산현대축구단. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
- 울산, 6년 전 '아시아 깡패' 부활위한 3가지 조건 (in Korean). Sports Chosun. 20 September 2012.
- "History: Ulsan Hyundai Football Club". Ulsan Hyundai FC. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
- 김호곤, 편견과 싸워 이긴 울산 사령탑 5년 (in Korean). Best Eleven. 5 December 2013.
- "Ulsan's ultimate victory". ESPNFC. 10 November 2012.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ulsan Hyundai. |
- Official website (in Korean)
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