Banner wars: Daejeon Hana Citizen and Incheon United fans have history | OneFootball

The banner wars between Daejeon Hana Citizen and Incheon United go back almost a decade, and the rivalry and dislike between the two sets of supporters go back even further.

As soon as the whistle met the lips of referee Kim Yong-woo to signal the end of the ix-pointer between Incheon United and Daejeon Hana Citizen last Sunday, the away end erupted in joy and jubilation, and probably a fair bit of relief, but the other three sides of Sungui Arena Park were left stunned and tearful. The unthinkable had happened, the ship that had seemed unsinkable had sunk.

The sold-out away end of over 2,100 Daejeon fans didn't wait long before unfurling several banners, taking glee in the misfortune of Incheon. Daejeon fans had waited for this moment, though. In November 2015, almost exactly nine years ago, Daejeon headed into their home fixture with Incheon six points adrift of the relegation playoff spot with two games to go following a loss to Ulsan the week before. They were, for all intents and purposes, already relegated but not mathematically. Daejeon then lost to Incheon on that November afternoon and relegation was confirmed, something which the Incheon fans in the away end seemed to take great pleasure in. Banners were unfurled and Daejeon fans didn't forget.

The revenge sought in the Round 37 win a week ago was almost perfectly executed from a Daejeon point of view because, not only did the win relegate Incheon, but it secured safety for the Purples. Daejeon manager Hwang Sun-hong quickly pleaded with the away fans to take the banners down and talked about "respect for the opposition" in his post-match press conference, but Daejeon fans had had their moment. It took nine years, but they got their revenge.

As reported bySports G, Hwang said: "Winning or losing is very important in K League but how you react to a result is also important. In life, I think you have to have respect. Our fans have told me that they too have had to go through a lot. (But) There needs to be respect for the opposition, that's what I said to them."

What did the banners say?

There were quite a few banners last Sunday, some are easier to translate than others. One was a play on the Incheon area code of 032, which roughly said something along the lines of "Forever third-rate fans in the second tier" with the Korean word for zero being "yeong" and also making up the first half of the Korean word for "forever," the rest is self-explanatory.

Others said: "Get lost from K1," "Incheon dogs in K2", "Row the boat to K2," "Congrats on Water bottle vs. Ice (nearby K League 2 side Bucheon, whose fans allegedly threw ice towards the pitch) in 2025," and one aimed at Kim Do-hyuk who enraged Daejeon fans last season when he kicked a water bottle towards them, which read: "Half-digit half-star in personality and concept," as the player's nickname is "Half-star."

Daejeon fans unfurling banners after final whistle against Incheon (Image via FM Korea)

Incheon fans' reaction

As banners made by K League fans usually are, there were a lot of cleverly-worded digs at the opposition with elements of suggestion, innuendo, and nuance. But what did Incheon fans think of all this One Incheon fan we spoke to said the banners were expected:

"Actually, I knew they were going to do that. So actually, I hoped we didn't lose so they're not going to make fun of us, but unfortunately, yeah, that's how it goes."

The banners were expected by some, but not all: "It depends on how long have you been following Incheon for, I think. For example, I will say the one incident, in 2015 the year when Daejeon got relegated, I remember I went to watch that game and Incheon fans were making fun of Daejeon fans. So, basically, when Daejeon fans were making fun of us at the last game, I thought, 'yeah, I think I'll call it reasonable,' because we did it before, and all Daejeon fans were waiting for this moment. So it's okay for me, but for those people who just recently became a fan, I think they were thinking 'Why are they doing this to us?' But for old fans, we did it before so they were waiting for it, but new people maybe got more angry because of this incident. But yeah, I think we did deserve it."

The same fan was also full of praise for Hwang Sun-hong for asking Daejeon fans to take the banners down: "I didn't expect him to do this kind of like act, but I feel grateful. It was a class act. Such a gentleman."

Daejeon had been, in 2013, 2015, and 2023, easy points for Incheon United, losing just once to the Purples. The Incheon faithful were expecting another win when they travelled to Daejeon in the summer, only for the hosts to earn a last-gasp 2-1 win:

"Basically, we thought every game we play against Daejeon, basically we going to win this one because we didn't lose in like, how many years was it? I think was like nine years we didn't lose. So, I think that was the basic thought about most of the Incheon fans thought, I think."

Heated rivalry

The rivalry properly began in 2012 with what is now a notorious incident, when a Daejeon fan kicked the Incheon mascot. One life-long Daejeon fan tells K League United what the circumstances were at the time: "It was the first season when relegation was introduced in 2012, and since the opening game of the season, the two teams had lost three games in a row, so was a big problem if they lost. In the first half, Kevin Oris was injured and the game got overheated. Incheon were winning and the mascot provoked the Daejeon fans. So, after the mascot assault, an Incheon fan assaulted a Daejeon fan. Since then, Incheon has constantly provoked Daejeon."

The Incheon fan believes that the rivalry will only get more heated, when the two teams eventually do meet each other again: "I think these kinds of stories are actually needed for K League, in my opinion. Because this year many fans actually came to watch the games and I think there still needs to be more stories like this. So in the future, if Incheon faces Daejeon, maybe in a cup game, or even in the same league in the future, I think that there's going be more of a rivalry."