'27 million won' Professional soccer player minimum salary, 4 major sports 'lowest'... Players' Association "Urgent to Improve Treatment"

*This content was translated by AI.

• The 'lowest' of the four major professional sports

The Korea Professional Footballers Association pointed out the reality of the lowest annual salary of professional soccer players among the four major professional sports (football, baseball, volleyball, and basketball) in Korea, and voiced that "it is urgent to improve treatment."

According to the Korea Professional Football Association on the 5th, the minimum annual salary for professional soccer players is 27 million won, barely exceeding the minimum hourly wage converted into annual salary (about 24.73 million won) as of 2024.

In fact, according to the Korean Professional Football Federation player regulations, the minimum basic annual salary for domestic players is set at 27 million won.

In particular, the minimum annual salary of professional soccer players is the lowest among the four major professional sports compared to the minimum annual salary of 42 million won for men's professional basketball players, 40 million won for men's professional volleyball, and 30 million won for professional baseball (33 million won from the 2027 season).

Lee Keun-ho, president of the Professional Footballers Association, said, "After Yang Hyun-jong, president of the Professional Baseball Players Association, publicly called for improved treatment, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced that it has confirmed the minimum annual salary increase for players to reflect rising prices and the trend of raising the minimum wage," adding, "We welcome the KBO decision to raise the minimum annual salary by accepting the proposal of Yang Hyun-jong, president of the Players Association."

"Football players, who represent Korea and have to take the most activity and risk of injury, are ironically subject to the lowest lower limit," he said. "Last year, the K-League recorded an all-time box office hit with more than 3 million paid spectators, but behind the spectacular lighting, there are new players who are worried about an unstable future with salaries that are no different from the minimum wage."

"Considering the soaring prices and short player lives, will it be possible to maintain and motivate a living as a professional at the current level of 27 million won?" he said. "Now is the time to reinvest in the league through a minimum annual salary increase and promote livelihood stability and motivation for new players."

Kim Hoon-ki, secretary-general of the Korea Federation of Players, also said, "The Korea Federation of Players has consistently insisted on the need to raise the minimum annual salary, and Chairman Lee Geun-ho and other executives have also emphasized the realization of the minimum annual salary several times," adding, "I think now is the golden time to correct this."

Based on the KBO decision, the Players' Association decided to propose the realization of the minimum salary (at least 30 million won) and the expansion of the number of registered players at the men's and women's boards and regular general meetings in 2026.

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*This content was translated by AI.