Kim Byung-ji, CEO of Chuncheon, sorry for bending his head. I hope we can be together in 2027
Aug 19, 2025
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In a live broadcast on the club's YouTube on the 18th, CEO Kim said, `I feel sorry for the citizens of Chuncheon, Gangwon FC fans, and Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province residents. I'm sorry I couldn't be with you."
Gangwon FC's home game next year will be held only in Gangneung. As a result of the application for the hosting of Gangwon FC's home game in 2026, Gangneung City applied alone on the 12th. As a result, the entire K-League and Korea Cup match of Gangwon FC in 2026 will be held in Gangneung. Gangwon FC received applications for the venue from Chuncheon City and Gangneung City from the 22nd to 3 p.m. on the 5th of last month, and only Gangneung City submitted it at that time. From the 5th to 3 p.m. on the 12th, it was decided to accept the re-publication in the same way as the existing public offering, and if the re-publication is applied alone, the local government that applied for the 2026 K-League and Korea Cup home games will hold it.
This contest was a procedure to determine the order of hosting in accordance with the principle of distributed hosting in the first and second half of the year. The public offering method was the same as it was three years ago. Gangwon FC has offered the number of games it wants and subsidies per game for the 2023-2025 season home games in 2022, and the minimum amount was the same as this contest. In this contest, Gangwon FC applied a single item of 'hosting subsidy' as an evaluation criterion. The same criteria and conditions were provided to all target local governments, and the results were confirmed according to the submitted application. Gangneung City will host all games next year at 80 million won per game, the same as the previous three years. As the application was made only in one place, the distributed hosting was canceled.
Gangwon FC and Gangwon FC's board of directors explained the procedure and results of the contest in detail, refuting the argument with Chuncheon City that the incident was Gangwon FC's responsibility. When Gangwon FC announced its intention to hold next year's home game as a competitive bidding method between Chuncheon and Gangneung, Chuncheon City protested, saying, `The provincial team is trying to attract local governments to compete for prices,' and said it would not apply for the contest without an apology from CEO Kim Byung-ji.
The Gangwon board of directors requested that CEO Kim meet with Chuncheon Mayor, but Chuncheon City did not accept it. A solution was sought through Muja contact, but it was not achieved due to Chuncheon City's refusal. It was then carried out in the same way as it is now when selecting to host the 2022 home game. Chuncheon City also participated without objection. The decision was also made in the same principle, and there is no intention to exclude or discriminate against certain regions.
However, Chuncheon City expressed its position that `the public offering regulations undermined the principle of co-prosperity and distributed hosting and encouraged tax competition.' `We will respond to the consultation only when the principle of respecting Chuncheon as an equal partner in the development of Gangwon football is clearly reflected in all procedures and operations.'
Through this live broadcast, CEO Kim said "We created an atmosphere by playing in the first half of the game in Chuncheon, but we regret that we will not be able to give you a chance next year."I apologize for not giving Chuncheon citizens the opportunity to watch soccer unintentionally" he said, expressing regret.
Repeatedly emphasizing the fairness of the public offering process, CEO Kim said "We proceeded in the same way as in 2022, and the lowest bidding price started from KRW 80 million (as before).""Both cities wanted to hold the second half of the year, so the club could not arbitrarily adjust.", he explained. Finally, emphasizing that the contest is limited to 2026, he said, `I hope that in 2027, a home game will be held where all Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province residents can join."
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
