Gwangju FC lost to FC Seoul in the home opening game due to bad news, but gained strength from the growing support of fans.
Gwangju lost 0-2 in the home opening game of the 2nd round of the Hana 1 Q K League 1 2023 against FC Seoul held at the Gwangju Soccer Stadium on the 5th. Starting with winning the K-League 2 last season, the momentum rose with a 1-0 victory in the first match of the first round against Suwon Samsung, but the momentum was dampened by the defeat against Seoul.
The match against Seoul could not be regretted only by defeat. Gwangju recorded the highest number of spectators, 7,351, after moving its home stadium to the Gwangju Soccer Stadium in July 2020. It is positive that they received support from many fans.
The record for the largest number of spectators in Gwangju is the result of the efforts of the team and front desk. Coach Lee Jeong-hyo has said, “I will play football that gives pleasure to the fans” as a habit from the 2022 season to the present.
He wasn’t obsessed with just winning. I tried to show the performance that the fans can enjoy. There was no defending soccer, and even if you were ahead, you kept ordering goals. Head coach Lee Jeong-hyo’s attacking soccer led Gwangju local fans to the stadium little by little.
The biggest crowd in Gwangju has already warmed up. In the last home game against Gyeongnam FC in October 2022, 5,861 people were summoned, and last season, K League 2 recorded the largest number of single spectators. Despite the rainy weather at the time, most of the spectators stayed in their seats until the end of the game. A person in charge of Gwangju even said, “The emotion of the day must have continued in the home opening match.”
Also, the same goes for Suwon and the last round 1 expedition. Gwangju had hundreds of away fans at the time. All three 40-passenger expedition buses were sold out. It was different from before when there was only a small expedition cheering squad. 안전놀이터
Gwangju staff also responded to the team’s efforts. In addition to Gwangju Metropolitan City Hall, Mudeungsan, U-Square and Gwangju Songjeong Station, which are key transportation hubs in Gwangju, carried out extensive guerrilla publicity. During the opening ceremony, various events and prize draws were held to add to the fun.
Gwangju played an overwhelming game against Seoul only in the first half. In the 10th minute of the second half, if it had not been for Um Ji-sung’s accumulated warnings, the crowd was delighted with strong pressure and rapid development of attacks that would have made it possible to win against Seoul. Although they lost because they couldn’t overcome the hurdle, the 7,000 home fans must have been comforted by Gwangju’s thrilling performance. Gwangju is trying to follow this flow and move forward as a club that is more loved by local fans.