Gimcheon Sangmu

Gimcheon Sangmu FC (Hangul: 김천 상무 프로축구단; Hanja: 金泉 尚武 프로蹴球團) is a professional football club that competes in the K League 2. The club is based in Gimcheon, South Korea. Sangmu (상무, 尙武) means martialism and is the sports division of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

Sangmu's playing staff is made up of young South Korean professional footballers serving their compulsory two-year military duty. Fifteen players join up at the start of every season and spend two years with the side before returning to their previous professional club. Sangmu are not allowed to sign any foreign players because of their military status.

This article also includes the predecessor military-based teams – Sangmu FC, Gwangju Sangmu FC and Sangju Sangmu FC – which are still separate legal entities.

History

Various military clubs (1950s–1983)

Before the Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps and its football club Sangmu FC were founded in 1984, the Republic of Korea Armed Forces had three football clubs: ROK Army FC, ROK Marine Corps FC, and ROK Air Force FC.

The ROK Army originally established football clubs of each corps: KACIC FC (Korea Army Counter Intelligence Corps Football Club,also known as CIC FC and Seoul Football Club/ Seoul Club), HID FC (Headquarters of Intelligence Detachment Football Club), Quartermaster Corps FC (consisted of only quartermasters), OPMG FC (Office of the Provost Marshal General Football Club, former Military Police Command FC), Engineer Corps FC, and Infantry School FC. Most of them (excluding Quartermaster Corps FC) were merged into the Engineer Corps FC in 1965.

Lastly, these two clubs were united, and Army FC was established in 1969. Afterwards, the Marine Corps FC renamed as ROK Navy FC due to the dissolution of the Headquarters Marine Corps in 1973.

Founding and semi-professional Sangmu FC era (1984–2002)

Sangmu FC was founded on 11 January 1984, as the football side of Korea Ar

This page also has a version in other languages :  Санджу Санму (russian)