.png){kind=small}
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
4 hours ago
5
ARTICLE AD BOX
Ulsan HD's Jo Hyeon-woo blocks a shot during the Club World Cup group F soccer match between Ulsan HD and Mamelodi Sundowns in Orlando, Tuesday, June 17, 2025. (AP Photo)
In 1999, three years before the country co-hosted the World Cup, South Korea banned its football clubs from signing foreign goalkeepers. The idea back then was to create a deep pool of homegrown custodians.
Twenty-six years later, that decision has been reversed.
Starting with the 2026 season, the K-League clubs will be allowed to sign overseas goalkeepers. According to the K League United website, the competition’s board noted that the ‘restrictions on a specialised position had led to a disproportionate rise in wages’. It forced them to remove the ban to ensure there was wage parity.
The decision was taken at a board meeting on Thursday, the league said in a statement. “The board said it took into consideration the fact that foreign players were restricted from registering as goalkeepers, a specialised position, resulting in excessive salary increases for domestic players compared to field players,” it added.
“The number of clubs has increased significantly since the time the foreign goalkeeper restriction was introduced, so even if foreign goalkeepers were allowed, domestic goalkeepers would still have enough playing time. As a result, from 2026, the K-League will remove the stipulation that the goalkeeper must be a domestic player from the K-League’s competition guidelines, which will apply to both the K-League 1 and K-League 2.”
When the South Korean league banned its clubs from registering foreign players as keepers in 1999, it had eight teams. The reason back then was that the domestic keepers did not get enough playing time.
South Korea’s K-League 1 has now expanded to 12 teams, with a second tier introduced in 2013. Clubs from both divisions will be allowed to sign foreign goalies.
The three goalkeepers in South Korea’s most recent international squad — Kim Seung-gyu, Kim Dong-heon and Lee Chang-geun — for their FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Iraq and Kuwait earlier this month, all play in the domestic league.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
English (US) ·