Explained: K League promotion and relegation in 2026

The promotion and relegation system in K League is complicated at the best of times, but factor in an expansion to K League 1 and the relocation of the army team, and it gets even more complicated.

Why is the promotion-relegation system different?

There are two reasons why the system is different this year. The first is that K League 1 will expand from 12 teams to 14 in 2027, which means more teams will win promotion from K League 2 in order to fill the extra spaces. The second is that Gimcheon Sangmu will be no more, with Sangmu - the army team - moving elsewhere. K League rules stipulate that if the army team moves, it must start from K League 2. The same thing happened when Sangmu moved from Sangju to Gimcheon in 2020.

How many will go up?

This is where it gets tricky. But what can be said with confidence is that two teams will go up automatically - the K League 2 winners and runners-up.

A third team will go up via the playoffs. This is guaranteed this year, rather than there solely being the Promotion-Relegation Playoffs, which we've become accustomed to over the years. Third through sixth in K League 2 will enter the promotion playoffs. 

Third will host sixth and fourth will host fifth over one leg, with the winners to meet in a playoff final. The winners will earn promotion to make it three up guaranteed, two to make it 14 teams, with the third to replace Gimcheon, who'll be relegated regardless.

Now, this is where it really gets tricky. A fourth K League 2 team (Four teams? You're insane) could go up, but this depends on where Gimcheon Sangmu finish in K League 1. 

Only if Gimcheon finish above 12th, i.e., 11th or higher, will there be the potential for a fourth team to win promotion. This is because the losers of the promotion playoffs will get a second chance, facing 12th (not Gimcheon) in a promotion-relegation playoff.

As Gimcheon are going to be relegated regardless of where they finish, if they don't finish last, then it's only fair that the 12th-placed team be in danger of going down. This is where the potential fourth promotion spot comes in.

K League 2 relegation

It's been a question that anyone with even a slight interest in K League has been asking for years: "When is the pyramid opening up?" Well, the answer is now. There's more K League promotion and relegation to wrap our heads around as, finally, the K League 2 trap door will open. 

The team that finishes 17th in K League 2, last place, will face the winners of K3 in a promotion-relegation playoff over one leg at the home ground of the K League 2 side. Only if the K3 team has applied for a K League license will they be able to make the leap into K League, though.