Daegu finished the 2003 K League season in 11th place (out of 12 teams), winning seven games, and drawing sixteen. In the 2003 Korean FA Cup, Daegu reached the quarterfinals, where they were defeated 1–0 by Ulsan Hyundai Horang-i. Daegu improved in 2004 to tenth place in the league which, due to Incheon United's entry, now numbered 13 clubs. In the FA Cup, Daegu were knocked out in the round of 32 by National League side Ansan Hallelujah. In the Samsung Hauzen Cup, a new cup competition run as a league competition specifically for K League clubs (thus excluding National League and lower tier clubs) during the K League's mid-season break, finished eighth out of 13 teams. The following season saw Daegu placed eighth place in the league and seventh in the Samsung Hauzen Cup. In the FA Cup, after defeating University and National League sides, Daegu were knocked out in the quarterfinals in a 2–1 loss to another K League side, the Chunnam Dragons.