'300 million won to 5 million won' Korea Cup prize money significantly increased... Full-scale overhaul of the tournament with 'first-ever autumn-spring format' [Official Announcement]

*This content was translated by AI.

The Korea Football Association (KFA) has completely restructured the Korea Cup, which determines the strongest domestic adult club across both professional and amateur ranks. Aligning with international football trends, the tournament schedule has been shifted to a two-year autumn-spring format, and the total prize money, including the championship prize, has been substantially increased to enhance the tournament's motivation and prestige.

On the 21st, the KFA held the draw for the 2026–2027 Hana Bank Korea Cup at Cheonan Korea Football Park. The association also officially announced the match schedule from the preliminary round through the round of 16, alongside the significantly increased prize system.

The most notable change is undoubtedly the expansion of the prize pool. To elevate the tournament's prestige and provide tangible benefits to participating teams, the KFA increased the total prize money from 712 million won to 1.104 billion won, an increase of approximately 4 million won. Accordingly, the championship prize has been raised from 300 million won to 5 million won.

Prize money for advancing to higher rounds has also been significantly increased through a cumulative system. Teams reaching the round of 16 after the third round will now receive 10 million won each, up from 0.4 billion won, while teams advancing to the quarterfinals will receive 12 million won, up from 0.5 billion won. Particularly, the prize money for teams reaching the semifinals (top four) was drastically increased by over 400%, from 6 million won to 25 million won.

The tournament schedule has been flexibly adjusted to reflect overall international competition calendars, including the K League and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL). This measure was taken considering that K League teams have a very tight schedule in the second half of the year due to the impact of this year's FIFA World Cup in North, Central America, and the Caribbean.

The new season Korea Cup will officially kick off with the preliminary round on June 20. The first round will be held on July 4, the second round on July 15, and the third round on July 29, with the round of 16 (fourth round) taking place on August 19. After a brief pause, the tournament will resume in May 2027, with the quarterfinals on May 19, the semifinals on May 26, and the long-awaited final on June 5.

A total of 63 clubs from the K League 1 down to the K League 5 will participate in this tournament. Eight teams from the K League 5 will compete in the preliminary round, after which higher-league teams will join sequentially by round. The eight K League 1 teams not participating in the ACL Elite (ACLE) will begin from the third round, while the four K League 1 teams participating in the ACLE and playoffs (Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, Daejeon Hana Citizen, Pohang Steelers, and Gangwon FC) will start the tournament from the round of 16.

Special exception rules have also been established. In the case of Kim Cheon (SVP), whose franchise agreement with Gimcheon City is set to expire at the end of this year, it has been decided that even if the team advances to the quarterfinals next year, it will retain its eligibility to participate in the tournament as a military team (Armed Forces), regardless of external factors such as a change in franchise location or the establishment of a new club in Gimcheon.

All matches will be played as single-elimination games, and video assistant referee (VAR) will be introduced from the quarterfinals onward. Each team is allowed to use a total of five substitution cards, and substitutions due to concussion are additionally permitted regardless of whether the existing substitution quota has been used.

Park Il-gi, head of the KFA Tournament Operations Division, emphasized through the association: "We focused on adjusting the schedule to create an environment where participating teams can perform at their best." He added, "By significantly increasing the prize money for advancing to each round, we ensured clear motivation not only for the championship team but also for lower-league teams. We will continue to strive to make this tournament worthy of its title as the competition to determine South Korea's strongest adult team."

Meanwhile, as part of a rebranding initiative to inherit the history and tradition of the Korea Cup, the KFA is currently producing a new emblem and trophy, which will be unveiled separately at a later date. The draw for the tournament after the quarterfinals will also be conducted at a future separate schedule.

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*This content was translated by AI.