Imagine being a Paju Frontier supporter now, contemplating the upcoming K League 2 fixture in Gimhae. This is the final round of fixtures before the international break, and the last opportunity to visit the south coast this season.

This match, however, is being played at 19:00 on Sunday night. A whopping 405 kilometers separate the two stadiums. There is a high-speed KTX departing Jinyoung Station at 21:26, arriving in Seoul after midnight.

Jinyoung Station is 12 km from Gimhae Stadium. To make that train, the Paju supporter will need to have a taxi booked and ready to leave at full time. But that’s not all!

By the time the supporter arrives in the capital, another 40 km still separates Seoul Station from Paju. The subway system will have ended for the night, requiring another taxi. Arriving home at 1 am before the start of a new working week isn’t ideal.

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For any football supporter, it is a disaster. As Incheon United supporter Luke Evans notes, these matches “get me back after the subway has finished, so add another 50,000₩. I’ve missed loads of matches because there’s no way back.”

Why is this fixture being played on Sunday night?

Away from the legacy clubs like FC Seoul, Suwon Samsung, Jeonbuk Hyundai, and Ulsan HD, K League clubs, especially those in the second tier, struggle to attract big crowds. Every attempt should be made to maximize potential spectator interest.

But first and foremost, the fixture list should be reasonable. The league must ensure clubs at the extreme ends of the country are not punished for the location of the stadium. It isn’t fair on fans.

Nor is it ideal for players, coaches, media and medical staff, and other members of the traveling party. K League clubs don’t travel by private jet. The entire travelling party will be on a bus making the four-hour journey to Paju.

If they’re home by 2 am, it’ll be a good result.

Gyeongnam FC, based on the south-east coast near Gimhae, are also playing on Sunday, in Yongin. That’s a journey of 333 km, stadium to stadium. There’s an argument for this match to be moved to Saturday, but at least it is at the slightly more convenient time of 16:30.

To rub salt in those Paju wounds, Chungnam Asan will play Cheonan City at 16:30 on Saturday. Asan and Cheonan are neighboring cities, separated by that same KTX line Paju supporters must ride to return home on Sunday night.

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Mike Brandon, Ansan Greeners fan, says “Sunday night is okay for a home match, but disastrous for away matches.”

Television viewership is instrumental in determining kickoff times, but K League 2 occupies a very different broadcasting landscape. With no comprehensive public viewing figures, it is difficult to argue that switching Asan versus Cheonan from Saturday to Sunday would materially affect television audiences.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Busan IPark make their own 350 km away trip to Gimpo. That match is also on at 19:00.

Baffling kickoff times have blighted the league all season. The good news for Paju, Gimpo, Busan, and Gimhae – to name just four – is the 19:00 start times end this weekend. When K League resumes on October 9, the latest kickoff will be 16:30.

Daegu have been suffering recently. Stuart Warren wants to travel with his team, but that isn’t always possible. “I love Friday nights, but scheduling some of our furthest away trips, such as Ansan and Paju, for 19:30 on a Friday makes it extremely difficult to make it.”

It isn’t limited to K League 2, either. FC Seoul will travel to Sangju (200 km) to face Pohang Steelers for their 19:00 start on Sunday. Pohang Steel Yard is undergoing security checks. Sangju is more complicated to reach.

The same-day 16:30 clash was reserved for Jeonbuk Hyundai versus Gwangju. They are separated by 100 km, but, crucially, are on the same KTX line.

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All this is to say that K League doesn’t need to radically revamp its kickoff times, fixture schedule, or a complete overhaul of the league structure. What it needs is more understanding of the challenges posed by clubs straddling the very edges of Korea.

Of course, scheduling a professional league involves broadcasters, stadium availability, policing and numerous other considerations. Not every fixture can be arranged around travelling supporters.

But when obvious alternatives exist, geography should surely be one of them.

K League can’t change where Paju, Gimhae, Busan or Gyeongnam are located. It can, however, decide when they play. Sometimes, that’s all it takes to make football accessible.