Cheonan Football History Museum Collection Surpasses 10,000 Artifacts

The collection of artifacts for the Football History Museum in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, has exceeded 10,000 items.

Cheonan City announced Monday that it has collected 10,018 artifacts as of December 15, following collection efforts that began in 2020 for the construction of the Football History Museum.

The city received 5,276 artifacts as donations from 75 individual donors associated with football-related organizations including the Korea Football Association, Korea OB Football Association, Red Devils supporters' group, Daejeon Hana Citizen FC, and Cheonan City FC.

The city also purchased 4,544 artifacts related to Korean football history and acquired 198 items transferred from collections held by Cheonan City Urban Corporation and other sources.

Among the collected items are historically valuable materials from the Japanese colonial period when football was first introduced to Korea, materials related to the 1948 London Olympics shortly after liberation, and materials from the 1954 Switzerland World Cup, which marked South Korea's first World Cup finals appearance.

The museum plans to showcase diverse stories of Korean football through donated materials from former and current players of national teams, K League, and WK League.

The city is currently storing 10,017 artifacts at the Yu Gwan-sun Memorial Hall storage facility in Byeongcheon-myeon and one large Taegeukgi flag from the Red Devils at the Hong Dae-yong Science Museum in Susin-myeon. These items will be transferred after the museum's completion.

The Football History Museum is scheduled to undergo a design competition in January next year, with construction beginning in June 2027 and completion expected in December 2028.

The city plans to collect 2,000 artifacts annually until the museum opens in 2028.

"We plan to utilize the collected artifacts in various areas including exhibitions and experiential education programs at the Football History Museum," said Kim Tae-heon, head of the Football Comprehensive Center Construction Division. "We will continue to expand our collection of meaningful artifacts in Korean football history."