The Haves and the Have Nots met on Saturday night in Sungui | OneFootball

Incheon United continued their unstoppable march towards K League 2 promotion when Hwaseong FC were well-beaten on Saturday evening. The game perfectly highlighted the enormous gulf between the haves and have nots in the league.

When the referee blew his whistle to start the Round 17 clash between Incheon United and Hwaseong FC, this was the first meeting here between two clubs in their K League 2 debut seasons. The sides had previously met on a cold and wet Saturday afternoon in the spookily empty Hwaseong Stadium in early April. Now they faced off in the more intimate settings of Sungui Arena and the vast differences between the clubs was evident for all to see.

The paths taken to reach this point have been vastly different. Incheon United will be celebrating their 25th birthday in 2028. Sitting in the media section at their wonderful home for a home fixture with Hwaseong FC is a curious sensation. It feels like yesterday they welcomed Shandong Taishen and Yokohama F. Marinos for continental tussles. How the mighty have fallen. Incheon were relegated from K League 1 last year, even though they divided their season evenly between 12th and top six. In other words, they shouldn't be here.

The other K League 2 new boys, Hwaseong, don't have quite an illustrious history. Formed in 2013, they competed in amateur/semi-pro leagues enjoying some success before the local city hall applied for K League 2 membership last year. The ladder hasn't opened yet from the second to the third tier, so the only way clubs like Hwaseong can make the jump is to turn fully professional and look for a license. In fairness to Hwaseong, they won K3 in 2023 and finished second last year.

Despite their inexplicable relegation, Incheon are cruising in the second division. They started the season as favorites for the only automatic promotion spot but the nature of their domination has surprised and impressed most observers. Following the conclusion of this match, Incheon stretched their lead at the top to 13 points, having lost once in 17 games. Records are going to be smashed.

The same can't be said of Hwaseong, but that shouldn't constitute a shock. Even though Hwaseong aren't the worst team in the league - that title is reserved for Cheonan City - they have lost 10 of their 17 matches for a total of 13 points. They're averaging less than a goal a game but at one point Hwaseong sat above Suwon Samsung. Managed by the legendary Cha Du-ri, consolidating their position is important and they look to have done that.

But let's be honest. Hwaseong (and friends) offer nothing to the league. It isn't their fault; no rules and laws have been broken. They've played it exactly by the book. As I've written here before, K League 2 expansion is a complete waste of time. Gimpo, Cheonan, Cheongju, and Hwaseong have recently joined the league by this route. At least two more are following next year.

There aren't enough professional footballers in Korea to justify nearly 30 full-time squads. And because Hwaseong are city owned, how they spend their money is important. They're not bidding for Jesse Lingard, Gus Poyet, or Joo Min-kyu. They're also going to find it extremely difficult to tempt K League veterans to wear their jersey if other options are on the table. The squad will be made up largely of prospects from university, journeyman local pros unwanted by every other club, and mysterious strikers yanked from the lower divisions of Brazilian football.

Understandably, the contrast between the two clubs can be seen on the pitch, before anywhere else. According to Transfermarkt, the total market value ofIncheon (€7.8 million) is almost double that of Hwaseong on €4 million.

Hwaseong's giant Bosnian centre back Aleksandar Vojnovic has a current market value of €700,000. Capped once by his country during covid, Vojnovic spent his entire career in his homeland before an 18-month stint in Serbia. He's probably the best player to wear Hwaseong's orange and white kit. No other player in the squad comes close to Vojnovic's value. Top scorer Baek Seung-woo came through the ranks at Jeju SK, but it wasn't until he moved to K3 did he start playing regular football.

The situation at Incheon is completely different. 28-year-old goalkeeper Kim Dong-heon was exceptional in the Asian Champions League before heading to Gimcheon to complete his military service. He missed Incheon's relegation but established himself as a top K League 1 goalkeeper. Recently, Kim sat on the bench for the Korean national team and will be determined to ensure his spell in K League 2 is a short one. He is very highly rated.

Korea have qualified for the 2026 World Cup. Kim could well be in their squad. Should North Macedonia qualify, Stefan Mugosa will be part of their traveling party. The legendary striker has scored 14 in 17 appearances this season. At international level, he has represented his country 61 times, scoring 15. Modou Barrow started against Hwaseong. The former Gambian international won two K League 1 and two Korean FC Cup trophies with Jeonbuk Motors. Gerso Fernandes, who had a hand in both Incheon goals on Saturday, once commanded a transfer fee of €1.5 million when he swapped Portugal for MLS.

The funniest part was seeing Incheon's 36-year-old Sin Jin-ho arrive off the bench for his 300th K League appearance. Shin has previously played for Pohang Steelers, FC Seoul, and Ulsan HD, amongst others. Manger Cha laughed numerous times in his post-match statement to the media. He highlighted the enormous challenge facing his side and to emphasize the point, he listed the players named above. Hwaseong hit the post at 0-1 but Incheon absolutely dominated his side. They looked knackered at full time.

Another area exposing the gulf between these two clubs is in their following. Incheon's season average has dropped by almost 10% to 9,970 per match. Hardly a surprise when FC Seoul, Jeonbuk Motors, and Ulsan HD have been replaced by Seoul E-Land, Cheonan City, and Gyeongnam. But their figure is still good enough for second overall and they did hold the K League 2 attendance record when 18,173 turned up to see the mighty Bluewings.

Hwaseong feature squarely at the bottom of that particular ranking. 3,731 saw their season opener and not since then have they come close to topping that (although Suwon have yet to visit). Their average of 2,005 is nearly 200 fewer than Cheonan City. Hwaseong has a population of 1 million but with Suwon on their doorstep, whatever K League fans that exist in the city are likely to already have a club. Elbowing your way into the market is very tough.

Interestingly, Hwaseong are the best-located team in K League 2. The division is dominated by clubs, like Hwaseong, in the Seoul region. However, as the southern-most team in Gyeonggi Province, they are also very close to Cheonan City. Chungnam Asan, and Chungbuk Cheongju in neighboring provinces. Only Busan IPark, Jeonnam Dragons, and Gyeongnam FC could be considered genuine road trips. Hwaseong's trip to Busan is almost 100 km shorter than Gimpo's.

Had Cha Du-ri's team still been slugging it out in K3, fans would have a menu of Gimhae, Ulsan, and Gangneung to choose from for away trips. However, you'd be mistaken for thinking the close proximity of away stadiums means a good traveling support. A rough estimate in the away end suggested 88 Hwaseong fans made the short trip north to Incheon for Saturday's meeting under the lights. The interest isn't there to sustain a fully professional football club.

The future for Incheon United looks strong. As the only professional football club in a city of three million people, they'll be back in K League 1 soon. Average gates will be above 10,000 again and fans will expect the club to compete for local honors and continental qualification. The same can't be said of Hwaseong. Promotion is highly unlikely so the club will get bogged down in a bloated second tier featuring a bunch of clubs they once played against in K3.

Incheon's supporters did recognize their efforts, at least. The away team lapped up a vociferous and well-deserved applause from the South Stand at Sungui before boarding the bus home. With no relegation to worry about, earning respect wherever they go will have to do.