# 2017 K League Challenge

The 2017 K League Challenge was the fifth season of the K League 2, the second-highest division in the South Korean football league system. Champions and winners of the promotion playoffs could be promoted to the K League 1.

## Teams
### Team changes

Relegated from K League Classic
* Suwon FC
* Seongnam FC
Promoted to K League Classic
* Daegu FC
* Gangwon FC
Newly joined
* Ansan Greeners
Withdrawn
* Goyang Zaicro
* Chungju Hummel

### Stadiums

| Ansan Greeners | FC Anyang | Asan Mugunghwa | Bucheon FC 1995 | Busan IPark |
| Ansan Wa~ Stadium | Anyang Stadium | Yi Sun-sin Stadium | Bucheon Stadium | Busan Gudeok Stadium |
| Capacity: 35,000 | Capacity: 17,143 | Capacity: 19,283 | Capacity: 34,545 | Capacity: 12,349 |
| Daejeon Citizen | Gyeongnam FC | Seongnam FC | Seoul E-Land | Suwon FC |
| Daejeon World Cup Stadium | Changwon Football Center | Tancheon Stadium | Seoul Olympic Stadium | Suwon Sports Complex |
| Capacity: 40,535 | Capacity: 15,500 | Capacity: 16,146 | Capacity: 69,950 | Capacity: 11,808 |

### Personnel and sponsoring

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Team | Managers | Kit manufacturer | Main sponsor |
| Ansan Greeners | Lee Heung-sil | Kelme | Ansan Government |
| FC Anyang | Kim Jong-pil | Astore | Anyang Government |
| Asan Mugunghwa | Song Sun-ho | Puma | Asan Government |
| Bucheon FC 1995 | Jeong Gab-seok | Astore | Bucheon Government |
| Busan IPark | Cho Jin-ho | Adidas | Hyundai Development Company |
| Daejeon Citizen | Lee Young-ik | Astore | Daejeon Government |
| Gyeongnam FC | Kim Jong-boo | Hummel | Gyeongnam Government |
| Seongnam FC | Park Kyung-hoon | Umbro | Seongnam Government |
| Seoul E-Land | Kim Byung-soo | New Balance | E-Land |
| Suwon FC | Cho Duck-je | Hummel | Suwon Government |

### Foreign players

Restricting the number of foreign players strictly to four per team, including a slot for a player from AFC countries. A team could use four foreign players on the field each game.
| Club | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Asian Player |
| Ansan Greeners | Luka Rotković | Raúl Tarragona | | Bahodir Nasimov |
| FC Anyang | Jô | Lukian | Aubin Kouakou | |
| Bucheon FC 1995 | Nilson Júnior | Waguininho | Rodrigo Paraná | Bakhodir Pardayev |
| Busan IPark | Danny Morais | Rômulo | Léo Mineiro | Michihiro Yasuda |
| Daejeon Citizen | Bruno Cantanhede | Levan Shengelia | Cristian Dănălache | |
| Gyeongnam FC | Alex Bruno | Marcão | Ivan Herceg | |
| Seongnam FC | Dário Júnior | Marin Oršulić | Filip Hlohovský | |
| Seoul E-Land | Wesley Alex | Daniel Lovinho | Tomoki Wada | Atsuki Wada |
| Suwon FC | Bruce Djite | Pedro Carmona | Vladan Adžić | Adrian Leijer |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Gyeongnam FC (C, P) | 36 | 24 | 7 | 5 | 69 | 36 | +33 | 79 | Promotion to the K League 1 |
| 2 | Busan IPark | 36 | 19 | 11 | 6 | 52 | 30 | +22 | 68 | Qualification for the promotion playoffs semi-final |
| 3 | Asan Mugunghwa | 36 | 15 | 9 | 12 | 44 | 37 | +7 | 54 | Qualification for the promotion playoffs first round |
| 4 | Seongnam FC | 36 | 13 | 14 | 9 | 38 | 30 | +8 | 53 | Qualification for the promotion playoffs first round |
| 5 | Bucheon FC 1995 | 36 | 15 | 7 | 14 | 50 | 46 | +4 | 52 | |
| 6 | Suwon FC | 36 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 42 | 48 | −6 | 45 | |
| 7 | FC Anyang | 36 | 10 | 9 | 17 | 40 | 58 | −18 | 39 | |
| 8 | Seoul E-Land | 36 | 7 | 14 | 15 | 42 | 55 | −13 | 35 | |
| 9 | Ansan Greeners | 36 | 7 | 12 | 17 | 36 | 54 | −18 | 33 | |
| 10 | Daejeon Citizen | 36 | 6 | 11 | 19 | 41 | 60 | −19 | 29 | |

## Positions by matchday

Leaders  Qualification for the promotion playoffs

### Round 1–18

| Team ╲ Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
| Gyeongnam FC | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Busan IPark | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Asan Mugunghwa | 9 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 |
| Bucheon FC 1995 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Seongnam FC | 9 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| Suwon FC | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 |
| FC Anyang | 6 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| Ansan Greeners | 1 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Seoul E-Land | 6 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Daejeon Citizen | 6 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |

### Round 19–36

| Team ╲ Round | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 |
| Gyeongnam FC | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Busan IPark | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Asan Mugunghwa | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Seongnam FC | 6 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Bucheon FC 1995 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Suwon FC | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 |
| FC Anyang | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 7 |
| Seoul E-Land | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Ansan Greeners | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Daejeon Citizen | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |

## Results
### Matches 1–18

| Home \ Away | ANS | ANY | ASM | BUC | BIP | DJC | GNM | SEN | SEL | SUW |
| Ansan Greeners | — | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–4 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 3–3 |
| FC Anyang | 2–1 | — | 0–2 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 1–2 |
| Asan Mugunghwa | 1–0 | 4–0 | — | 2–1 | 0–2 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Bucheon FC 1995 | 2–0 | 6–2 | 1–2 | — | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 |
| Busan IPark | 3–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | — | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 2–2 |
| Daejeon Citizen | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–3 | — | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 4–3 |
| Gyeongnam FC | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | — | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 |
| Seongnam FC | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | — | 0–2 | 0–1 |
| Seoul E-Land | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–3 | 3–3 | 0–1 | 0–0 | — | 0–0 |
| Suwon FC | 0–4 | 3–3 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | — |

### Matches 19–36

| Home \ Away | ANS | ANY | ASM | BUC | BIP | DJC | GNM | SEN | SEL | SUW |
| Ansan Greeners | — | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 |
| FC Anyang | 2–0 | — | 1–3 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–4 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 |
| Asan Mugunghwa | 0–0 | 2–0 | — | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 |
| Bucheon FC 1995 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 3–0 | — | 0–2 | 1–0 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 |
| Busan IPark | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | — | 4–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 |
| Daejeon Citizen | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | — | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 2–0 |
| Gyeongnam FC | 3–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 4–2 | — | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 |
| Seongnam FC | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | — | 2–2 | 3–0 |
| Seoul E-Land | 3–3 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | — | 0–0 |
| Suwon FC | 0–2 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | — |

## Promotion playoffs
### Bracket

| First round | First round | First round | Semi-final | Semi-final | Semi-final | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| | | | 2 | Busan IPark | 3 | | | | | |
| | | | 3 | Asan Mugunghwa | 0 | | | | | |
| 3 | Asan Mugunghwa | 1 | 3 | Asan Mugunghwa | 0 | | | | | |
| 4 | Seongnam FC | 0 | | | | | | | | |
| 4 | Seongnam FC | 0 | | | | Busan IPark | Busan IPark | 0 | 1 | 1 (4) |
| | | | | | | Sangju Sangmu (p) | Sangju Sangmu (p) | 1 | 0 | 1 (5) |

### Final

The promotion-relegation playoffs were held between the winners of the 2017 K League Challenge playoffs and the 11th-placed club of the 2017 K League Classic. The winner on aggregate score after both matches earned entry into the 2018 K League 1.
1–1 on aggregate. Sangju Sangmu won 5–4 on penalties and therefore both clubs remain in their respective leagues.

## Player statistics
### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC | 22 |
| 2 | Raúl Tarragona | Ansan Greeners | 15 |
| 3 | Waguininho | Bucheon FC 1995 | 12 |
| 4 | Jung Won-jin | Gyeongnam FC | 10 |
| 5 | Ko Kyung-min | Busan IPark | 9 |
| 5 | Lee Jeong-hyeop | Busan IPark | 9 |
| 5 | Cristian Dănălache | Daejeon Citizen | 9 |
| 5 | Park Sung-ho | Seongnam FC | 9 |
| 5 | Jin Chang-soo | Bucheon FC 1995 | 9 |
| 10 | Baek Sung-dong | Suwon FC | 8 |
| 10 | Jeong Jae-hee | FC Anyang | 8 |

### Top assist providers

| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
| 1 | Chang Hyuk-jin | Ansan Greeners | 13 |
| 2 | Jung Won-jin | Gyeongnam FC | 10 |
| 3 | Alex Bruno | Gyeongnam FC | 8 |
| 3 | Kim Shin | Bucheon FC 1995 | 8 |
| 5 | Atsuki Wada | Seoul E-Land FC | 7 |
| 6 | Rômulo | Busan IPark | 6 |
| 6 | Lee Ho-seok | Daejeon Citizen | 6 |
| 6 | Kim Shin | Bucheon FC 1995 | 6 |
| 9 | Kim Bong-rae | Suwon FC | 5 |
| 9 | Lee Ju-yong | Asan Mugunghwa | 5 |
| 9 | Jeong Jae-hee | FC Anyang | 5 |

## Attendance

Attendants who entered with free ticket were not counted.
| Pos | Team | Total | High | Low | Average | Change |
| 1 | FC Anyang | 60,078 | 10,683 | 1,360 | 3,338 | +82.7%$^†$ |
| 2 | Seongnam FC | 50,427 | 6,700 | 1,410 | 2,802 | −58.4%$^†$ |
| 3 | Ansan Greeners | 48,635 | 8,405 | 915 | 2,702 | n/a$^†$ |
| 4 | Busan IPark | 43,302 | 6,337 | 1,024 | 2,406 | +56.8%$^†$ |
| 5 | Gyeongnam FC | 39,273 | 7,278 | 713 | 2,182 | +81.8%$^†$ |
| 6 | Daejeon Citizen | 38,787 | 5,136 | 1,032 | 2,155 | −15.2%$^†$ |
| 7 | Suwon FC | 38,655 | 8,455 | 711 | 2,148 | −51.0%$^†$ |
| 8 | Asan Mugunghwa | 35,188 | 7,933 | 726 | 1,955 | +94.5%$^†$ |
| 9 | Bucheon FC 1995 | 35,047 | 7,209 | 0 | 1,947 | −6.4%$^†$ |
| 10 | Seoul E-Land | 28,996 | 4,531 | 631 | 1,611 | +22.9%$^†$ |
| | League total | 418,388 | 10,683 | 0 | 2,324 | +54.3%$^†$ |
Updated to games played on 29 October 2017 Source: K League Classic Notes: $^†$ Team played previous season in K League Classic.

## Awards

The 2016 K League Awards was held on 20 November 2017.

### Main awards

* Most Valuable Player: Marcão (Gyeongnam FC)
* Top goalscorer: Marcão (Gyeongnam FC)
* Top assist provider: Chang Hyuk-jin (Ansan Greeners)
* Manager of the Year: Kim Jong-boo (Gyeongnam FC)

### Best XI

| Position | Player | Club |
| Goalkeeper | Lee Bum-soo | Gyeongnam FC |
| Defenders | Choi Jae-soo | Gyeongnam FC |
| Defenders | Park Ji-soo | Gyeongnam FC |
| Defenders | Ivan Herceg | Gyeongnam FC |
| Defenders | Woo Joo-sung | Gyeongnam FC |
| Midfielders | Jung Won-jin | Gyeongnam FC |
| Midfielders | Hwang In-beom | Daejeon Citizen |
| Midfielders | Moon Ki-han | Bucheon FC 1995 |
| Midfielders | Bae Ki-jong | Gyeongnam FC |
| Forwards | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC |
| Forwards | Lee Jeong-hyeop | Busan IPark |

### Player of the Round

| Round | Player | Club |
| 1 | Lee Jung-hyup | Busan IPark |
| 2 | Heo Beom-san | Busan IPark |
| 3 | Kim Eun-sun | Asan Mugunghwa |
| 4 | Cho Seok-jae | FC Anyang |
| 5 | Kim Min-kyun | FC Anyang |
| 6 | Lee Jung-hyup | Busan IPark |
| 7 | Jeong Jae-hee | FC Anyang |
| 8 | Kim Min-kyun | FC Anyang |
| 9 | Lee Seung-hyun | Suwon FC |
| 10 | Kim Min-kyun | FC Anyang |
| 11 | Raúl Tarragona | Ansan Greeners |
| 12 | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC |
| 13 | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC |
| 14 | Lim Sang-hyub | Busan IPark |
| 15 | Lee Kyu-seong | Busan IPark |
| 16 | Cristian Dănălache | Daejeon Citizen |
| 17 | Kim Shin | Bucheon FC 1995 |
| 18 | Danny Morais | Busan IPark |
| Round | Player | Club |
| 19 | Baek Sung-dong | Suwon FC |
| 20 | Lee Seung-hyun | Suwon FC |
| 21 | Go Myeong-seok | Bucheon FC 1995 |
| 22 | Kim Dong-chan | Seongnam FC |
| 23 | Hwang In-beom | Daejeon Citizen |
| 24 | Jung Won-jin | Gyeongnam FC |
| 25 | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC |
| 26 | Choi Oh-baek | Seoul E-Land |
| 27 | Choi Oh-baek | Seoul E-Land |
| 28 | Ko Kyung-min | Busan IPark |
| 29 | Kim Chan-hee | Daejeon Citizen |
| 30 | Kim Hyun | Asan Mugunghwa |
| 31 | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC |
| 32 | Kim Kyeong-min | Busan IPark |
| 33 | Marcão | Gyeongnam FC |
| 34 | Ryu Won-woo | Bucheon FC 1995 |
| 35 | Jeong Hyeon-cheol | Gyeongnam FC |
| 36 | Baek Sung-dong | Suwon FC |

### Manager of the Month

| Month | Manager | Club | Division |
| March | Jo Sung-hwan | Jeju United | K League Classic |
| April | Kim Jong-boo | Gyeongnam FC | K League Challenge |
| May | Choi Yun-kyum | Gangwon FC | K League Classic |
| June | Choi Kang-hee | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | K League Classic |
| July | Seo Jung-won | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | K League Classic |
| August | Hwang Sun-hong | FC Seoul | K League Classic |
| September | Kim Do-hoon | Ulsan Hyundai | K League Classic |
| October | André | Daegu FC | K League Classic |