# 2004 K League

The 2004 K League was the 22nd season of the K League. The previous single format of the league was replaced by two regular stages and playoffs in this season. Each team played a total of 12 matches against every other team in each stage. After both stages were finished, two winners and the top two clubs in the overall table qualified for the playoffs.

## Regular season
### First stage

The first place team qualify for the championship playoffs.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Pohang Steelers | 12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 12 | +4 | 23 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 2 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 12 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 16 | 9 | +7 | 20 | |
| 3 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 12 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 11 | 8 | +3 | 20 | |
| 4 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 12 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 19 | 16 | +3 | 18 | |
| 5 | FC Seoul | 12 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 10 | +2 | 16 | |
| 6 | Jeonnam Dragons | 12 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 17 | 13 | +4 | 15 | |
| 7 | Gwangju Sangmu Bulsajo | 12 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 11 | 12 | −1 | 15 | |
| 8 | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | 12 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 16 | −3 | 15 | |
| 9 | Busan I'Cons | 12 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 7 | 8 | −1 | 14 | |
| 10 | Daegu FC | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 19 | 19 | 0 | 12 | |
| 11 | Daejeon Citizen | 12 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 9 | 11 | −2 | 12 | |
| 12 | Bucheon SK | 12 | 1 | 8 | 3 | 7 | 12 | −5 | 11 | |
| 13 | Incheon United | 12 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 20 | −11 | 9 | |

### Second stage

The first place team qualified for the championship playoffs.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 12 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 12 | 8 | +4 | 23 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 2 | Jeonnam Dragons | 12 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 7 | +5 | 22 | |
| 3 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 6 | +5 | 21 | |
| 4 | Incheon United | 12 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 11 | 9 | +2 | 17 | |
| 5 | FC Seoul | 12 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 7 | +1 | 17 | |
| 6 | Busan I'Cons | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 11 | +3 | 16 | |
| 7 | Daegu FC | 12 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 11 | 12 | −1 | 16 | |
| 8 | Gwangju Sangmu Bulsajo | 12 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 8 | −1 | 14 | |
| 9 | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | 12 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 10 | 12 | −2 | 14 | |
| 10 | Bucheon SK | 12 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 12 | 15 | −3 | 14 | |
| 11 | Daejeon Citizen | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 9 | 15 | −6 | 14 | |
| 12 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 12 | |
| 13 | Pohang Steelers | 12 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 12 | −5 | 9 | |

### Overall table

The top two teams in the overall table qualified for the championship playoffs.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 24 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 22 | 14 | +8 | 41 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 2 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 24 | 12 | 5 | 7 | 31 | 24 | +7 | 41 | Second stage winners |
| 3 | Jeonnam Dragons | 24 | 9 | 10 | 5 | 29 | 20 | +9 | 37 | Qualification for the playoffs |
| 4 | FC Seoul | 24 | 7 | 12 | 5 | 20 | 17 | +3 | 33 | |
| 5 | Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors | 24 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 23 | 18 | +5 | 32 | |
| 6 | Pohang Steelers | 24 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 23 | 24 | −1 | 32 | First stage winners |
| 7 | Busan I'Cons | 24 | 6 | 12 | 6 | 21 | 19 | +2 | 30 | Qualification for the Champions League |
| 8 | Gwangju Sangmu Bulsajo | 24 | 6 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 20 | −2 | 29 | |
| 9 | Seongnam Ilhwa Chunma | 24 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 23 | 28 | −5 | 29 | |
| 10 | Daegu FC | 24 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 30 | 31 | −1 | 28 | |
| 11 | Daejeon Citizen | 24 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 26 | −8 | 26 | |
| 12 | Incheon United | 24 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 20 | 29 | −9 | 26 | |
| 13 | Bucheon SK | 24 | 4 | 13 | 7 | 19 | 27 | −8 | 25 | |
* ↑ Qualified as champions of the FA Cup.

## Championship playoffs
### Bracket

| Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Semi-finals | Final | Final | Final | Final | Final |
| Suwon Samsung Bluewings | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 1 | | | | | |
| Jeonnam Dragons | Jeonnam Dragons | 0 | | | | | |
| Jeonnam Dragons | Jeonnam Dragons | 0 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings (p) | Suwon Samsung Bluewings (p) | 0 | 0 | 0 (4) |
| | | | Pohang Steelers | Pohang Steelers | 0 | 0 | 0 (3) |
| Pohang Steelers | Pohang Steelers | 1 | Pohang Steelers | Pohang Steelers | 0 | 0 | 0 (3) |
| Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 0 | | | | | |

### Final table

| Pos | Team | Qualification |
| 1 | Suwon Samsung Bluewings (C) | Qualification for the Champions League |
| 2 | Pohang Steelers | |
| 3 | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | |
| 4 | Jeonnam Dragons | |

## Top scorers

This list includes goals of the championship playoffs. The official top goalscorer was decided with records of only regular season.
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals | Apps |
| 1 | Mota | Jeonnam Dragons | 14 | 22 |
| 2 | Nonato | Daegu FC | 13 | 23 |
| 3 | Nadson | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 12 | 26 |
| 4 | Woo Sung-yong | Pohang Steelers | 10 | 26 |
| 5 | Kim Eun-jung | FC Seoul | 8 | 24 |
| 5 | Marcel | Suwon Samsung Bluewings | 8 | 26 |
| 7 | Zé Carlos | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i | 7 | 12 |
| 7 | Ricardo Irineu | Bucheon SK | 7 | 22 |
| 9 | Cheick Oumar Dabo | Bucheon SK | 6 | 15 |
| 9 | Andy Cooke | Busan I'Cons | 6 | 20 |
| 9 | Itamar | Jeonnam Dragons | 6 | 22 |
| 9 | André Luiz Tavares | Pohang Steelers | 6 | 23 |

## Awards
### Main awards

| Award | Winner | Club |
| Most Valuable Player | Nádson | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Top goalscorer | Mota | Jeonnam Dragons |
| Top assist provider | Hong Soon-hak | Daegu FC |
| Rookie of the Year | Moon Min-kui | Pohang Steelers |
| Manager of the Year | Cha Bum-kun | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |

### Best XI

| Position | Winner | Club |
| Goalkeeper | Lee Woon-jae | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Defenders | Rogério Pinheiro | Pohang Steelers |
| Defenders | Yoo Kyoung-youl | Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i |
| Defenders | Javier Martín Musa | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Defenders | Kwak Hee-ju | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Midfielders | Kim Dong-jin | FC Seoul |
| Midfielders | André Luiz Tavares | Pohang Steelers |
| Midfielders | Kim Do-heon | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Midfielders | Kim Dae-eui | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Forwards | Nádson | Suwon Samsung Bluewings |
| Forwards | Mota | Jeonnam Dragons |
Source: