Downtrodden K League clubs make coaching changes
Gwangju FC's new head coach, Lee Jung-kyu / Courtesy of Gwangju FC
The coaching carousel churned at full speed for some downtrodden K League football clubs Wednesday.
Suwon Samsung Bluewings of the second-tier K League 2 brought in former Gwangju FC boss Lee Jung-hyo, who had been rumored to be on his way to Suwon since the end of their season earlier this month. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Gwangju FC terminated their deal with Lee by mutual consent Sunday with two seasons left, allowing the 50-year-old to take over a club looking to recapture its glory days and earn promotion back to the K League 1.
Suwon Samsung suffered direct relegation to the second division following the 2023 season. After finishing well out of contention in the K League 2 last year, they finished in second place this year to qualify for the promotion-relegation playoffs against Jeju SK FC.
A win would have sent Suwon Samsung back to the K League 1, but they lost the two matches of the home-and-away showdown by a combined 3-0.
They cleaned house by letting head coach Byun Sung-hwan walk and not extending a new contract to 10 players.
Suwon Samsung see Lee as a key piece of the puzzle, given his track record of success with the underfunded Gwangju FC.
Lee led the team to the K League 2 title in 2022 for a direct promotion while setting the K League 2 record with 86 points and 25 wins. And Lee successfully kept Gwangju FC in the top division over the next three seasons while also taking them to the Korea Cup final and the Asian Football Confederation Champions League Elite quarterfinals this year.
"With his clear football philosophy, outstanding coaching skills and strong ability to develop players, we felt Lee Jung-hyo was the right person to help our club rebound," Suwon Samsung said. "Our preparations for the 2026 season are in full swing. We will do everything we can to be promoted back to the K League 1 for our fans."
Suwon Samsung Bluewings' new head coach, Lee Jung-hyo / Courtesy of Suwon Samsung Bluewings
Later Wednesday, Gwangju FC hired their former assistant coach Lee Jung-kyu to fill the head coaching vacancy.
Lee, 43, served as the top assistant under Lee Jung-hyo from 2022 to 2024. He has also worked as an assistant coach for local university and high school teams, and for K League 2 clubs Chungnam Asan FC and Seoul E-Land FC. This will be his first head coaching job.
Jeju SK FC, who ended up in the playoffs against Suwon Samsung after finishing in 11th place, second from last, in the K League 1, hired Portuguese tactician Sergio Costa as their new head coach Wednesday. Jeju SK said they will not disclose financial terms of the deal, per mutual agreement with Costa.
Costa served as the top assistant coach for the South Korean men's national team, under Paulo Bento, from 2018 to 2022.
Jeju SK started the 2025 season with Kim Hak-bum in charge, but he stepped down in September with the club in danger of relegation. Assistant coach Kim Jung-soo worked in a caretaker capacity for the remainder of the year and will now cede the way to Costa after keeping the club in the first division.
Jeju SK said Costa, who has prior experience as a scout and a data analyst, has an intimate understanding of the K League and its players, noting that he accompanied Bento on scouting trips across the league while working for the South Korean national team.
Also on Wednesday, Suwon FC, who were relegated to the K League 2 with a playoff loss to Bucheon FC 1995, terminated their deal with head coach Kim Eun-jung after two seasons and replaced him with Park Kun-ha hours later.
Kim had led them to a fifth-place finish in 2024, but they ended in 10th place this year before suffering the playoff defeat.
Park, 54, previously worked as head coach for Suwon Samsung from 2020 to 2022, and Seoul E-Land FC in 2016. Most recently, he was an assistant coach on the South Korean men's national team.