Incheon Eventually Ends Promotion War...Gyeongnam 3:0 rout K League 2 early wins + K League 1 return

Oct 26, 2025

Incheon Eventually Ends Promotion War...Gyeongnam 30 rout K League 2 early wins K League 1 return
Incheon Football Stadium/ K League 2/ Incheon United vs Gyeongnam FC/ Incheon Mugosa Scoring, Lee Myung-joo Help, Barlow, Gersono, Park Seung-ho/ Goal Ceremony/ Photo by Jung Jae-hoon



Incheon United has ended its promotion war.

Incheon beat Gyeongnam FC 3-0 in the 36th round of the 2025 K League 2 at Incheon Football Stadium on the 26th. With the victory, Incheon succeeded in widening the gap with second-place Suwon Samsung (67 points) to 10 points by 77 points, confirming an early win in the K League 2 and promotion to the K League 1 Direct regardless of the remaining game schedule. Incheon, which suffered its first relegation as the bottom of the K League 1 Final B last year, beat K League 2 for the first time in a year and announced its return to the first division.

Incheon coach Yoon Jung-hwan said in a meeting with reporters before the game, `Even if I don't say it, there will be tension between the players,' adding, `There are some players who are rigid in the thought of being the last (until promotion), and some players who are trying to communicate actively.' Regarding Suwon's early win and promotion confirmation opportunity when it drew with the Jeonnam Dragons the previous day, "I turned off the TV while watching 2-1 to check the high school team's game, but when I saw the result, I was surprised to see it tied "I want to finish (the promotion challenge) today, but I have to focus on soccer until the end. I told the players 'Let's be cool-headed ' he added. He also predicted that `there have been frequent pass misses recently, but if we reduce that part, we will be able to play well.'




Incheon Eventually Ends Promotion War...Gyeongnam 30 rout K League 2 early wins K League 1 return
Incheon Football Stadium/ K League 2/ Incheon United vs. Gyeongnam FC/ Spectator/ Incheon Fan/ Incheon Supporters Blue Black/ Banner/ We will definitely be promoted today/ Photo by Jung Jae-hoon
In Incheon, Park Seung-ho and Mugosa formed the front-line two-top, while Barlow Jung Won-jin and Lee Myung-joo and Gerson were deployed to the midfield. Lee Joo-yong, Kim Gun-woong, Kim Gun-hee, and Choi Seung-gu were in the goal. In Gyeongnam, Karyl Danrey Park Ki-hyun was located in the front, Kim Sun-ho, Kim Ha-min and Henan Han Yong-soo were in the midfield, and Choi Pil-soo was in the forward position to protect the goal in Park Jae-hwan, Lee Chan-dong and Kim Hyung-jin three-back.

There was a close game until the middle of the game. Incheon continued to target the back space of Gyeongnam's defense, but Gyeongnam blocked it, failing to lead to a decisive chance. Gyeongnam also made it clear that it would not be a sacrifice by aiming for the Incheon goal through counterattacks.

Incheon did not miss the moment and scored the first goal. In the 34th minute of the first half, Gervo, who took over the pass after breaking a rather long touch from Gyeongnam's defense on the left side, finished the first half with a 1-0 lead with a strong left-footed shot from the left side of the penalty box.




Incheon Eventually Ends Promotion War...Gyeongnam 30 rout K League 2 early wins K League 1 return
Incheon Football Stadium/ K League 2/ Incheon United vs. Gyeongnam FC/ Incheon Gerso Scoring, Mugosa/ Goal Ceremony/ Photo by Jung Jae-hoon
Incheon, which gained momentum, widened the gap by scoring an additional goal early in the second half. In the 8th minute of the second half, Mugosa finished with a header in front of the gate when Lee Myung-joo crossed from the right diagonal point of the penalty area. Three minutes later, Mugosa's right footed shot from the right side of the arc passed Choi Pil-soo's hand and hit the left post, but Barlow pushed it to widen the gap to 3-0. When the third goal was scored, the Incheon supporters enjoyed the joy of turning around and cheering as if they felt the victory.

With Incheon lowering its tempo after scoring its third, Gyeongnam attempted to counterattack based on its dominant possession. However, Incheon maintained the gap without showing any gaps. In the end, Incheon ended the game with a three-goal victory, scoring a K-League 2 victory and a K-League 1 Direct promotion celebration.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.