This March 10, 2024, file photo shows a crowd of 51,670 fans at Seoul World Cup Stadium before a K League 1 match between FC Seoul and Incheon United. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Dec. 31 (Korea Bizwire) — The top two divisions of South Korean professional football set a single-season record for ticket sales in 2024, data showed Tuesday.
The Korea Professional Football League (K League) said 25 clubs in the top-flight K League 1 and the second-tier K League 2 combined to sell 42.5 billion won (US$28.9 million) worth of tickets, topping the previous mark of 34.4 billion won set in 2023.
The K League has been tracking ticket sales numbers since 2013.
The 12 clubs in the K League 1 accounted for 34.2 billion won, led by FC Seoul with 7.6 billion won. FC Seoul led all clubs by drawing 501,091 fans. Ulsan HD FC, who won their third straight title this year, ranked second in ticket sales with 4.6 billion won.
Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors ranked third with 3.9 billion won, despite finishing in 10th place in the tables.
In the K League 2, Suwon Samsung Bluewings, relegated from the top division before the 2024 season, led all 13 clubs there with 3.1 billion won in ticket sales, accounting for 38 percent of the entire sales for their league. The K League 2 champions FC Anyang were a distant second with 791.5 million won.
The two divisions combined for a record 3.43 million fans this year, surpassing the previous record of 3.01 million fans from 2023.
(Yonhap)
