In an exclusive interview with Below The 38th, Connor Chapman discusses the continued improvement of Korean football, the atmosphere at Gimpo’s Solteo Stadium, and why he believes Suwon Samsung deserve promotion.
Almost a decade after swapping Melbourne City in the A-League for Incheon United in K League, Connor Chapman is as happy as ever in Korea. “Yeah, definitely,” was the defender’s enthusiastic response when asked.
I’ve sat through enough post-match and long-form interviews with the Australian to know his thoughts on Korea in general and Gimpo as a city. The latter might not feature on most people’s list of ideal locations in the country, so it has always surprised me to hear him speak so eagerly about the place.
This time, however, I wanted to ask him more about K League and its development.
Chapman is in a good position to comment on Korean football’s continued improvement. Since signing for Incheon United in 2017, the defender has made more than 150 appearances in Korean football. Pohang, Daejeon and Seoul have all featured in his journey before Gimpo came calling in 2024.
He probably never would have imagined it at the time, but his spell with Gimpo has become the longest of his professional career. The club has always felt like a project on the verge of significant expansion.
Gimpo have ambitious plans to reach K League 1. Solteo Stadium and its pitch have been developed or improved in recent seasons, and Chapman believes the training facilities are among the best in the country.
Some K League clubs give the impression of existing simply for the sake of having a professional team. A city has a stadium and enough people to fill a thousand seats, and that seems to be enough. Gimpo, on the other hand, feels like a club going places.
“This was the first year that there were more chances to go up,” Chapman notes. “You see that the quality, with investment, also goes up. This year, most K League 2 teams, when you see the squads, they’re pretty decent. They’ve been investing. K League is getting better every year.
“Even for us at Gimpo, we invested a lot this year, and obviously everyone is trying to go up to K League 1.”
In 2026, K League 2 expanded to 17 clubs for the first time. With the league looking to bring its numbers closer to those of K League 1, which has 12 clubs, the promotion opportunities on offer have added another layer of motivation. Two teams would earn automatic promotion, with a third able to join them through the playoffs and the possibility of a fourth promotion place as well.
As the season draws to a close, Gimpo have a flurry of home matches remaining. They spent much of the opening months on the road while repairs were carried out at Solteo Stadium. Chapman sees this as another sign of progress.
“We fixed our pitch. We went to Cheongju, and they fixed their pitch. The quality on the field and off the field, I think, is going up. I think Korea has done really well with that.
“But yeah, this year has been very competitive. I think most teams are investing in good players, good K League 1 players as well, to play in the league, and you sort of see that in some games as well.”
At this stage of the season, with clubs having five or six matches remaining, Suwon Samsung are well placed to end their near-three-year exile from K League 1. The Bluewings are five points clear of their two closest challengers.
Chapman thinks their time has come.
“I have to say Suwon Samsung have been the best team. They were very impressive here at Gimpo. They probably deserve to go up. They obviously recruited Luis Mina from us, which has been good recruitment for them. You have to say they’ve got the best squad to sort of finish it and go up, I think.”
The match Chapman refers to was August’s meeting at Solteo, when Suwon prevailed 4-1. It wasn’t quite the rout the scoreline suggests, but Suwon were very good. The game also made headlines because of the incredible atmosphere. Solteo has a habit of producing those moments.
“The Suwon Bluewings game, with them pretty much filling out their whole side, honestly gave me goosebumps as a player because the atmosphere was so good. It feels so close.”
Solteo has become a firm favourite among neutral supporters in Korea. The proximity to the pitch is central to its appeal, offering a rare pleasure in Korean football. The stadium has stands on just three sides, for now, and is remarkably compact. The Han River flows nearby, while planes landing at Gimpo Airport puncture the seemingly permanent blue skies.
“You only need 3,000 or 4,000 in that stadium and the atmosphere feels great. I think it’s a little bit similar to the Daegu stadium. We went there and you’re like, ‘Wow, this is a football stadium.’”
For now, at least, there are more pressing concerns than attractive stadiums and passionate supporters. Unfortunately for Gimpo, their home form has not been good enough. They lost at home to Seoul E-Land, a result that dropped them one place as they chase the final playoff spot.
They cannot afford to keep dropping points at home if they want to catch Busan IPark, who have been struggling themselves, in sixth place.
“Yeah, I mean, obviously Busan, as you said, are in free-fall, so anything could happen. It’s hard to judge what will happen. We are at home for most of our games now, but there are big players that have been out. And honestly, like you really know yourself in Korea, you start to win and you start to get some momentum. It’s the same way if you start to lose a few games.”
Local rivals Paju Frontier visit Solteo this weekend. Paju have been struggling with off-field issues in recent weeks, just like Gimpo. However, Gimpo appear to be on the road to recovery, while Paju’s future is much less certain.
But what about Gimpo’s own league ambitions?
Six matches remain, five of them at home. Three look very winnable on paper, but Gimpo’s home form is disastrous. Two victories in 11 matches do little to inspire confidence.
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