There are complaints from the K League 1 site about the professional soccer K-League promotion system. Up to three of the 12 teams can be demoted, which is excessively high.
Hwang Sun-hong, head coach of Daejeon Hana Citizen, said after the 37th round of the K League 1 against Incheon United at Incheon Football Stadium on the 10th, “I think the relegation rate is too high at this point.” Earlier, Jeju United coach Kim Hak-beom also voiced the need for improvement, saying the number of relegation teams is too high, but Hwang expressed the same opinion.
In the current K League 1 relegation system, the lowest team will be demoted to K League 2 without a promotion play-off (PO), the 11th place will be demoted to K League 2, and the 10th place will compete with the winning team of K League 2 PO (3rd to 5th place). Depending on the result of the promotion PO, at least one of the 12 teams and up to three teams may be demoted. Since K League 1 has established itself as a 12-team system, the number of relegation teams that have been 1+1 (direct relegation + promotion PO) has increased to 1+2 from the 2022 season.
The field points out that only the K-League has a higher ratio of demotion compared to the total number of teams compared to other leagues. For example, the lowest three teams in the English Premier League (EPL) or the Japanese J-League, in which 20 teams participate, are directly demoted. Although there is a clue that it is a promotion PO, some say that the ratio of the K-League, where up to three of the 12 teams may be demoted, is too high compared to other leagues.
“Young generations these days try not to appoint leaders. As coaches change by nine to 10 players in June due to demotion, it is not easy to find a good leader,” Hwang said. “We need to put our heads together to discuss the situation. It is important to have a structure suitable for reality,” Hwang said. “If the current system is inevitably maintained, we need to increase the number of K-League 1 teams.” 토토사이트
Despite such complaints from the field, there is no movement within the Professional Football Federation to discuss the adjustment of the number of promotion teams. In addition to the system that has only been three seasons, the K League 2 clubs have no choice but to consider the wide range of promotions and the success of the entire K League.
“It is clear that the promotion system will help the box office success, and if the number of promotion teams decreases again, there will be complaints from K League 2,” a club official from Final A said. “It is true that there is an excessive aspect in terms of the size of K League 1. To avoid relegation, lower-ranked teams will inevitably lead to excessive spending in the transfer market, which is at odds with the fiscal consolidation that the league emphasizes. I think it is necessary to discuss it again.”