Paju Frontier FC faces salary crisis in debut K League 2 season

Paju Frontier FC is facing a severe financial crisis during its inaugural season in K League 2. The club has reported a budget shortfall of approximately 1.5 billion KRW, leading to difficulties in paying player and staff salaries for the final three months of the year.

The deficit stems from a failure to secure 1.5 billion KRW in planned corporate sponsorships. While the club's budget of 9 billion KRW relied on 6 billion KRW in support from Paju City and 5 billion KRW from Gyeonggi Province, the lack of private funding has created a critical gap. Management admitted that the budget was finalized based on verbal promises of financial compensation from the club owner, which were never formalized in writing.

Simultaneously, Paju City is conducting a comprehensive audit of the club's operations, focusing on budget management, construction execution, organizational structure, and player recruitment. Local officials have suggested that the club may face intense restructuring to ensure fiscal responsibility, while critics argue that the rapid transition from the K3 League to professional status may have lacked sufficient financial verification and public consensus.