The men’s professional volleyball free agency market has opened.
The Korea Volleyball Organization (KOVO) released a list of 17 men’s free agents on Friday. The negotiation period runs from May 5 until 6 p.m. on May 18.
In the V-League, which has an FA tier system, players earning more than 250 million won per year are in the A tier, players earning between 100 million and 250 million won per year are in the B tier, 스포츠토토사이트 and players earning less than 100 million won per year are in the C tier.
A club that acquires an A-rated player must compensate the original club with 200% of the previous season’s salary, one of the five protected players (including free agent signings of that year), or 300% of the player’s previous season’s salary. The method of compensation is determined by the club.
A club that acquires a Grade B or Grade C player is only required to pay compensation without a compensation player. The compensation for B-grade players is 300% of the previous season’s salary, and 150% for C-grade players.
There are several setters on the market. One of the most prominent is Han. He is a fourth-year free agent. Han, who has been a one-team man for Korean Air since the 2007-2008 season, made history this year. He led Korean Air to its first four consecutive V-League titles (regular season and championship).
After winning the title since the 2020-2021 season, Korean Air won three consecutive titles last season, only the second time in V-League history. They also won the KOVO Cup and completed their first-ever treble (second in men’s history). This time, it was a first. It was possible because of Han.
As a first-time free agent, Kim made his debut with the KEPCO in the 2019-2020 season before joining Hyundai Capital via trade in November 2020. He has been a regular starter for Hyundai Capital since then. This season, he made his second career postseason appearance. After finishing the regular season in fourth place, the team faced third-place OK Financial Group in the semifinals. They fell short of qualifying for the playoffs with a 2-3 set loss.
Samsung Fire’s Noh Jae-wook has played for several teams in his career. He made his professional debut in the 2014-2015 season with LIG Insurance (now KB Insurance). He played for Hyundai Capital and Woori Card before being traded to the Samsung Fire in April 2020. He won the championship in the 2016-2017 season with Hyundai Capital. This is his second free agency since 2019.
Veteran Kim Kwang-guk became the third free agent. He started his career with Woori Capital (now Woori Card) in the 2009-2010 season and has been with the same team ever since. He has been with the Korea Electric Power since the 2020-2021 season.
In the men’s free agency market last year, only outside hitter Na Kyung-bok (who is serving a full-time reserve duty) changed teams. He left Woori Card and joined KB Insurance. This year, it will be interesting to see how many players will move.