Pro football players' association calls on top league to switch to fall-spring schedule

Seoul E-Land FC players take a moment during a hydration break during a K League 2 match against Hwaseong FC at Hwaseong Stadium in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, Aug. 7. Courtesy of Korea Professional Football League

The advocacy group for professional football players on Thursday called on the top domestic league to switch to the fall-spring schedule to better protect its athletes during summer.

In a statement, the Korea Pro-Footballer's Association (KPFA) said the K League must do away with the current spring-fall calendar because it leaves players exposed to severe summer heat.

"The K League must transition to the fall-spring schedule to protect players from the worsening climate crisis and punishing summer heat, and to maintain the league's leadership within Asia and its global competitiveness," the KPFA said.

Discussions on the calendar switch have been ongoing for years, with most of the major football leagues elsewhere following the fall-spring schedule. In Europe, for instance, the typical season begins in late August and ends in late May.

The K League season, on the other hand, begins in late February or early March and runs through November, with promotion-relegation playoffs held in December at times.

Korea is slowly coming out of a devastating heat wave that forced the top baseball league, Korea Baseball Organization, to cancel almost an entire week's worth of games last week. The K League pushed back kickoff times from 7:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. last weekend.

The KPFA said its demand for the transition is more than about protecting players from extreme weather conditions, noting that the top Asian club tournament, the Asian Football Confederation Champions League Elite, adopted the fall-spring schedule in the 2023-2024 season and Japan's top-flight J1 League has switched to the fall-spring arrangement this month.

K League clubs have balked at switching to the fall-spring schedule because cold snaps and snowy conditions during winter months may keep fans away and make it difficult for the teams to keep pitches in good shape.

The KPFA suggested a winter break, among other measures that can help minimize the impact of winter weather conditions.

"Players agree that enjoying a break during winter can better help them avoid injuries and maintain good physical form than having to play through multiple competitions under the scorching summer sun," KPFA President Lee Keun-ho said. "The league should set up more heating devices at stadiums and install hybrid grass for pitches, and make investments that can help the league for the long haul."