2026 Season Preview: Seoul E-Land

The 2026 K League 2 season is now only a few weeks away, and the buzz and excitement is in full flow across the division. With another expansion to the league, making it a total of 17 teams, the competition has never been higher as teams look to reach the top of the table and the promised lands of promotion. For Seoul E-Land Football Club, this will be their 12th season in K League 2, having never experienced the joys of top-flight football. They will hope that this year will be the season that changes all of that. Momentum has been building in the capital over the last few years, and it would be unwise for anyone to count out Seoul in 2026. However, with that being said, the Leopards will once again come up against strong opponents, some new faces and some old foes, as they look to finally escape the second tier. Michael Redmond takes a look at Seoul E-Land’s season ahead.

Last Season

17 W – 14 D – 8 L (4th place)

Knocked out in the K League playoff semi-finals by Seongnam FC, losing 1–0.

What Happened?

After licking their wounds from the loss against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors in the promotion/relegation final in December 2024, fans were worried this would be a one-and-done situation. Seoul lost a couple of key players during that off-season, most notably Bruno Silva, who made his move to Suwon Samsung Bluewings.

However, before fans could begin thinking about a long, hard season ahead, Brazilian forward Euller arrived to fill the void left by Bruno. It did not take long for Euller to help fans forget about his predecessor, as he scored a penalty in the opening game of the season in a 2–1 win against Chungnam Asan. Fortunes continued to improve with a draw against Jeonnam Dragons, followed by an emphatic 4–2 victory against Suwon Bluewings in their third match. Seoul started the season strongly, with just one loss in their first seven games, that defeat coming against eventual champions Incheon United. It looked as though Seoul had learned from the previous year and wanted to go one step further.

Then the summer arrived, and everything fell apart. From May 31st to July 19th, Seoul played eight games, losing five, drawing three, and winning none. The Leopards were in freefall, and fans feared they had thrown it away once again, reminiscent of the infamous 2021 season, when Seoul took maximum points from their opening five matches only to finish bottom of the table.

To add further insult to injury, the following five games brought just one win and four draws. Panic began to set in around the club. What helped Seoul during this period was that the teams around them also struggled for consistency, dropping points left, right, and centre rather than pushing for promotion.

Seoul eventually managed to pull things back together, losing just one of their remaining 13 league matches. This strong finish gave them the opportunity to secure fourth place in the table. An emphatic 6–0 victory against Ansan Greeners on the last day of the season showed that Seoul meant business heading into the playoffs.

Yet it was not to be for the Leopards in 2025. After an intense stalemate against Seongnam FC at Mokdong, forward Ruiz, now an FC Seoul player, scored in the 84th minute to knock Seoul out at the semi-final stage. Had Seoul held on for a few more minutes, a draw would have been enough due to home-field advantage. Instead, it was another heartbreaking exit and confirmation of yet another season in K League 2 for the Leopards.

Notable Moves

Rather than focusing on notable arrivals or departures, the key detail for Seoul E-Land this season is the players who have stayed. Just before the close of the 2025 season, Euller signed a three-year deal with the club, showing his understanding of, and belief in, the club’s goals. Osmar and Kim Oh-kyu, whose contracts were due to expire at the end of the season, have both decided to stay on for another year. This is especially exciting for fans of Osmar, as he had previously made it clear that he intended to complete two years at Seoul before retiring. His decision to extend shows that he recognises the strength within the squad and believes the team is building something positive under its current system. Players who finished the season uncertain about the future would very easily have chosen to hang up their boots.

One surprise re-signing during this transfer window was the return of Alan Cariús. Fans will remember the Brazilian as the player who featured for just 21 minutes in his debut for Seoul last season before suffering an injury. Head coach Kim Do-kyun clearly sees potential in Alan, bringing him back into the fold for 2026 and offering him a second chance to prove himself in the capital.

There were, however, some unfortunate departures during the off-season that slightly dented the squad. The exit that made the biggest headlines was goalkeeper Gu Sung-yun’s move to FC Seoul, a transfer that disappointed many E-Land supporters given his commanding presence between the posts. Australian defender Aaron Calver also departed, along with Pedrinho. In Pedrinho’s case, he spent the second half of the 2025 season on loan at Jeju SK before being sold to Ulsan HD, where he will now ply his trade in the top tier.

For the first time at Seoul E-Land, it feels as though the club is building on what it already has, rather than undergoing a constant rebuild as has been the case for most seasons. Seoul have managed to retain the majority of their big-name players, and as a fan, it shows a clear belief in the squad and a genuine desire to become a K League 1 team. It also suggests that the days of pressing the reset button at the end of every season are long behind them.

Key Player

Euller

A strong, passionate, and talented forward, Euller is not afraid to shoot from anywhere on the pitch in his pursuit of goals for Seoul. A player who can seemingly do anything with the ball at his feet, he is the kind of creative spark every team needs in its squad — the type of player who can grab a game by the scruff of the neck and turn a match that looks destined for a draw into a victory.

Euller was Seoul’s top goalscorer last season with 12 goals, made all the more impressive by the fact that scoring was spread evenly throughout the squad. John Iredale contributed 10 goals, Jeong Jae-min added eight, and Byeon Gyung-jun finished with seven. Euller also recorded 11 assists, underlining his influence on Seoul’s attacking output and explaining why goals were shared so evenly. Unafraid to run at defenders, his pace and dribbling ability allow Seoul to create goal-scoring opportunities they would not previously have found — not since the likes of Leandro during his breakout year with Seoul E-Land in 2020.

Even off the ball, Euller shows leadership. Should Osmar and Kim Oh-kyu depart at the end of 2026, it is difficult to imagine Euller not becoming the captain moving forward. He plays with passion, is adored by the fans, and embodies the identity of this team. This could be a defining year for the Brazilian, not only in cementing his place in Seoul E-Land folklore, but also in K League 2 history.

Young Player to Watch

Baek Ji-ung

If you read the2025 Season Review: Seoul E-Land, you may recall that Baek Ji-ung was named my Young Player of the Year. Once again, he is a standout prospect and a player to keep a close eye on in 2026.

Already nominated for Young Player of the Year at the K League Awards, Baek Ji-ung has quickly established himself as one of the most exciting young midfielders in Seoul E-Land’s squad. At just 21 years old, Ji-ung featured in 34 matches last season, starting 26 of them, a remarkable level of trust for a player of his age. While his return of four assists and one goal may appear modest on paper, those numbers only tell part of the story.

Fearless in the tackle and unfazed by one-on-one battles against older, more physical opponents, Ji-ung plays with a maturity well beyond his years. His intelligent movement consistently creates space for teammates, allowing Seoul to progress the ball more effectively and make better decisions in the final third. Time and again, he positioned himself to disrupt opposition defensive structures, helping to open up goal-scoring opportunities for the Leopards’ forwards. With another year of experience behind him, Baek Ji-ung looks set to take an even bigger step forward in 2026.

Biggest Question

Can the Seoul E-Land train not only keep rolling, but pick up enough momentum to finally reach its intended destination?

As someone entering a ninth year writing for K League United and covering the highs and lows of Seoul E-Land, it is impossible not to reflect on how far this club has come. In the early days of that journey, most articles focused on the lows, simply because that was the reality at the time. A brief spark arrived in 2020, only to be extinguished the following season.

However, ever since Kim Do-kyun arrived in the capital, the club has taken on a new identity — a renewed belief, a fresh outlook, and a genuine sense of challenge. The days of Seoul being routinely beaten are now long gone. There was a time when any victory felt like a cup final for supporters, simply because wins were so rare. Now, under Kim, victories come far more frequently, and expectations have grown alongside them.

Which brings us back to the question at hand: can Seoul take that final step forward? Over the last two seasons, they have been strong compared to the previous nine that came before, but can they establish themselves as a club to be genuinely feared in K League 2? Last season, we saw a very good Bucheon 1995 side earn promotion through the playoffs. That Bucheon team played with hunger rather than arrogance — they wanted promotion and relentlessly pursued it. Seoul could look to Bucheon as a clear blueprint for how to achieve their own promotion ambitions.

This season will undoubtedly be more challenging with 17 teams now in the mix, but it also presents opportunity. Automatic promotion is awarded to first and second place this year, with teams finishing third to fifth entering the playoff system, subject to Gimcheon Sangmu’s situation (seeExplained: K League promotion and relegation in 2026). Seoul have grown accustomed to playoff football over the last two years, something supporters once thought they might never witness.

The question now is whether this is the year they push just a little further — not merely settling for the playoffs, but knocking firmly on the door of automatic promotion.

Reason to Watch

Seoul E-Land are an exciting team, and it feels as though momentum has not been lost during the off-season. As mentioned earlier, the days of the squad being stripped back and rebuilt every winter are long gone. Instead, Seoul are building on something tangible as they head into the 2026 season.

There is a clear belief within the squad and a genuine sense of opportunity to achieve something the club has never managed before. This season, there is reason to expect more victories for Seoul, and it is difficult to see a repeat of the poor run of form they endured in 2025, when they went multiple games without a win. Instead, there is a feeling that late winners and hard-fought results could keep them firmly towards the top end of the table.

The start of the season will be tough for Seoul. They open with an away trip to Suwon Samsung Bluewings, followed by home fixtures against Gyeongnam and Busan IPark. That is then followed by away games against Cheonan City and Daegu FC. In all honesty, it is hard to imagine a tougher start. If Seoul can take valuable points from these early fixtures, the tempo will be set quickly and clearly for what this team wants to achieve in 2026.

The phrase “third time lucky” often gets used, but if Seoul do achieve promotion this year, it will not be down to luck. It will be something they have fully earned.

This season feels like a chance for Seoul to finally deliver on the promises made when the club was first formed. Back then, ambitions stretched as far as K League 1 and even the AFC Champions League. While that dream may still be some distance away, the 2026 campaign could be the moment the foundations for something truly special are finally laid.

It is shaping up to be a very exciting year to follow the action at Leoul Park (Mokdong Stadium).

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