A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Organising body | K League Federation |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1990 |
| Country | South Korea |
| Number of teams | 16 |
| Current champions | Group A: FC Seoul Group B: Pohang Steelers (2019) |
| Most championships | FC Seoul (10 titles) |
The R League (Korean: R리그), also known as the Korean Professional Football Reserve League, is the league for reserve teams of professional football clubs in South Korea.
History
The Korean Reserve League was started in 1990 with reserve teams of five K League clubs.[1][2]
It was not held for nine years after the inaugural season, but was relaunched in a new format in 2000. The participating teams were split into two or three group leagues, and high ranking teams of each league qualified for the playoffs to decide overall champions. It was renamed "R League" in 2009.[3] Korean Police participated in the R League until 2012, although it was not a reserve team of a K League club.
The R League was abolished in 2013 due to the foundation of the K League 2, which needed participating players,[4] but was restarted in 2016.[5] It was once again ceased in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On the one hand, the Korea Football Association (KFA) allowed reserve teams to join the K4 League in 2021, and so they could enter South Korean football league system.[6]
Champions
Champions by season
Reserve League (1990)
| Edition | Season | Single league |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1990 | POSCO Atoms |
Reserve League (2000–2005)
| Edition | Season | Championship | Central League | Southern League |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 2000 | Anyang LG Cheetahs | Anyang LG Cheetahs | Jeonnam Dragons |
| 3 | 2001 | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Pohang Steelers |
| 4 | 2002 | Anyang LG Cheetahs | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Gwangju Sangmu Bulsajo |
| 5 | 2003 | Not held | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Jeonnam Dragons |
| 6 | 2004 | FC Seoul | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Pohang Steelers |
| 7 | 2005 | Bucheon SK | FC Seoul | Jeonnam Dragons |
Reserve League (2006–2008)
| Edition | Season | Championship | Group A | Group B | Group C |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 2006 | Incheon United | FC Seoul | Incheon United | Jeonnam Dragons |
| 9 | 2007 | Pohang Steelers | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Jeju United | Pohang Steelers |
| 10 | 2008 | Incheon United | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Gyeongnam FC | Not held |
R League (2009)
| Edition | Season | Championship | Group A | Group B | Group C |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | 2009 | Incheon United | Incheon United | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | Pohang Steelers |
R League (2010–present)
| Edition | Season | Single league | Group A | Group B |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 2010 | Not held | FC Seoul | Pohang Steelers |
| 13 | 2011 | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | Sangju Sangmu Phoenix | |
| 14 | 2012 | Korean Police | Busan IPark | |
| 15 | 2016 | FC Seoul | Daegu FC | |
| 16 | 2017 | Ulsan Hyundai | Not held | |
| 17 | 2018 | Not held | FC Seoul | Daejeon Citizen |
| 18 | 2019 | FC Seoul | Pohang Steelers | |
| 19 | 2022 | Unknown | ||
Performance by club
K League's principle of official statistics is that final club succeeds to predecessor club's history & records.[7]
| Club | Group | National titles | Group titles | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FC Seoul | A | 3 (2000, 2002, 2004) | 7 (2000, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2016, 2018, 2019) | 10 |
| Incheon United | A | 3 (2006, 2008, 2009) | 2 (2006, 2009) | 5 |
| Pohang Steelers | B | 2 (1990, 2007) | 6 (2001, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2019) | 8 |
| Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | A | 1 (2001) | 7 (2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2011) | 8 |
| Jeju United | B | 1 (2005) | 1 (2007) | 2 |
| Ulsan Hyundai | B | 1 (2017) | — | 1 |
| Jeonnam Dragons | B | — | 4 (2000, 2003, 2005, 2006) | 4 |
| Sangju Sangmu Phoenix | B | — | 2 (2002, 2011) | 2 |
| Gyeongnam FC | B | — | 1 (2008) | 1 |
| Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | B | — | 1 (2009) | 1 |
| Korean Police | A | — | 1 (2012) | 1 |
| Busan IPark | B | — | 1 (2012) | 1 |
| Daegu FC | B | — | 1 (2016) | 1 |
| Daejeon Citizen | B | — | 1 (2018) | 1 |
Awards
Most Valuable Player
| Season | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 |  Choi Moon-sik
|
POSCO Atoms |
| 2000 | Kim Woo-jae
|
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma |
| 2001 | Back Young-chul
|
Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma |
| 2002 | Park Dong-suk
|
Anyang LG Cheetahs |
| 2003 | Not awarded | |
| 2004 | Han Dong-won
|
FC Seoul |
| 2005 | Yoo Hyun-goo
|
Bucheon SK |
| 2006 | Lee Keun-ho
|
Incheon United |
| 2007 | Lee Won-jae
|
Pohang Steelers |
| 2008 | Kang Su-il
|
Incheon United |
| 2009 | Kim Sun-woo
|
Incheon United |
