Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors clinched the 2025 K League 1 title Saturday, a season after narrowly avoiding relegation to the second division.
Jeonbuk defeated Suwon FC 2-0 at Jeonju World Cup Stadium in Jeonju, 200 kilometers south of Seoul, to improve to 71 points for the season with five matches to play. Their victory and a loss by second-place Gimcheon Sangmu FC to FC Anyang 4-1 on Saturday locked down Jeonbuk's 10th K League 1 trophy. Gimcheon remained at 55 points and cannot catch Jeonbuk even if they win out and Jeonbuk lose their remaining contests.
Andrea Compagno scored just a minute into the match and Tiago Orobo netted the second goal in the 61st minute.
No club has won more titles than Jeonbuk, whose previous championship came in 2021.
Last year, Jeonbuk finished 10th among 12 clubs in the K League 1 and had to survive a promotion-relegation playoff to stay in the top division.
In search of a spark, Jeonbuk hired former Sunderland boss Gus Poyet as their new head coach in December last year and he delivered just that.
Jeonbuk had 10 wins, 12 draws and 16 losses last year. They have more than doubled that win total this year with 21 wins, along with eight draws and four losses.
Jeonbuk won their first match of this season and then lost two of their next three matches. Following a 1-0 loss to Gangwon FC on March 9, Jeonbuk did not suffer another defeat until dropping to Pohang Steelers 3-1 on Aug. 24. Their 22-match undefeated streak, with 17 wins and five draws, is tied for the third-longest run in league history.
They have stayed at the top of the league tables since late May. (Yonhap)
