[Official] League Disciplinary Committee Announces Results: 'Incheon-Derogatory Supporters Banner' — Seoul Club Fined 8 Million Won

*This content was translated by AI.

• 'Drunk Driving' Busan Christian Suspended for 15 Matches 'Absent from Press Conference' Yoo Byung-hoon, Manager of Anyang, Fined 3 Million Won

Controversy arose after some FC Seoul supporters hung a banner that openly disparaged the opposing club and its region. The Korea Professional Football League (KPFL) held the club accountable and imposed a fine of 8 million won. Christian, a foreign player for Busan IPark caught drunk driving, received a suspension from 15 official matches along with other penalties. Yoo Byung-hoon, manager of FC Anyang, was fined for failing to attend the post-match press conference.

The KPFL announced on the 10th that it decided on these disciplinary actions against Yoo Byung-hoon, manager of Anyang; Christian from Busan; and the Seoul club during its sixth disciplinary committee meeting.

The banner disparaging Incheon United by some Seoul supporters, which drew criticism even from political circles, resulted in an 8 million won fine for the club.

Earlier, some Seoul fans unfurled a banner at the match against Incheon held on the 5th at Seoul World Cup Stadium, which read 'Jeon-dal-su (water) + Jo-geon-do (stealing) = Incheon UTD'. The phrase targeted both the current and former CEOs of Incheon as well as their home city simultaneously.

Notably, the Chinese characters for Incheon () were written as "," meaning "people are base," drawing criticism that the banner went beyond club rivalry to insult the entire city and its citizens of Incheon, a community-based team. Strong criticism also emerged from political figures, including Park Chan-dae, Mayor of Incheon.

Under the K League disciplinary regulations, clubs may be fined if they are involved in disparaging the league, other clubs, players, team staff, or officials, or if they violate safety guidelines. The K League Safety Guidelines prohibit bringing aggressive materials intended to insult opposing teams into stadiums.

Accordingly, the KPFL Disciplinary Committee stated: "When fan expressions go beyond simple criticism or opinion submission and risk damaging another party's reputation or appearing as an insult, such actions carry a danger of leading to group behavior or clashes. Posting malicious content that disparages other clubs violates the culture of mutual respect that the K League aims to uphold." Based on this assessment, the committee decided to impose disciplinary action on the Seoul club.

It further added: "Under K League regulations, when issues arise regarding order maintenance at stadiums, the home club bears responsibility. Therefore, disciplinary action against the Seoul club was deemed necessary due to its failure to fulfill its management responsibilities in crowd control and maintaining order."

A KPFL representative stated: "Through this incident, we plan to cooperate with all clubs to establish a healthy cheering culture that respects opposing teams and their home regions. While creating safe and orderly stadium environments, we will strictly respond in principle to any future acts of disparagement or aggressive expressions toward opponents in the stands, in accordance with match regulations and safety guidelines."

Previously, Christian, a foreign striker for Busan caught drunk driving, was suspended from 15 official matches and fined 4 million won.

According to the league, Christian was caught by police for drunk driving early on the 7th. His blood alcohol concentration was reported at 0.141%, a level that warrants license revocation. Christian reported the incident to his club the following day, and the club promptly notified the league of the same day.

Under the K League disciplinary standards for various violation types, if a player is caught drunk driving with a blood alcohol concentration meeting the threshold for license revocation, they face a suspension of 15 to 25 matches and a fine of at least 8 million won. The KPFL Disciplinary Committee decided on a 15-match suspension and a 4 million won fine for Christian.

Yoo Byung-hoon, manager of FC Anyang, received a 3 million won fine for failing to attend the official post-match press conference after the Bucheon FC game held at Bucheon Stadium on the 29th of last month. Article 37 of the K League match regulations mandates that managers must attend official press conferences. Failure to appear results in a fine of at least 500,000 won.

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*This content was translated by AI.