Ulsan Hyundai rebrand as Ulsan HD with new all-blue logo

The new Ulsan HD FC emblem was shared on the club's official Facebook account on Wednesday [SCREEN CAPTURE]

K League 1 team Ulsan Hyundai changed its name to Ulsan HD FC and unveiled a new emblem on Wednesday.

The “HD” comes from Ulsan’s parent company HD Hyundai, which was renamed from Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings early last year.

A noticeable difference with the new emblem is the enlarged image of a tiger. The new emblem also does not contain any yellow, as opposed to the old design.

Ulsan HD said through its official website that the change comes as the club aims to become a “prestigious” team in not just the K League but also Asia.

Whether Ulsan’s kit will also see a color or pattern change with the new emblem design remains to be seen, as the club has yet to reveal its uniform for 2024 season. Ulsan’s 2023 home uniform had both blue and yellow stripes, as its old emblem contained both colors.

Ulsan will wear the new emblem starting from the 2024 K League season when they mount a campaign to take the title for a third consecutive time.

Ulsan have been the best team in the K League for the past two seasons, winning back-to-back league titles in 2022 and 2023 for the club's first-ever successful title defense.

The league title in 2022 was Ulsan’s first league victory since 2005.

The 2023 K League ended on Dec. 3, but Ulsan still have work left to do in the AFC Champions League as they reached the knockout stage.

The draw for the Champions League knockout stage will take place on Dec. 28, and the Round of 16 matches will begin in February next year.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]