It's time to look into the deep regret of Pyo Seung-joo's retirement.
At the V-League Women's Free Agent (FA) market, which closed on the 24th, unfortunate news was reported at the last minute. Jeong Kwan-jang, outside heater, Pyo Seung-joo, announced his retirement from active duty. He was the only FA target to say goodbye after failing to sign an agreement.
It is a personal decision, but everyone in the volleyball community knows that he is a very experienced player. A volleyball player said, "He is now called a veteran player in terms of age, but he is also very experienced. He is a player who can play as an option no matter which team he plays right now," expressing regret over his retirement. Kim Yeon-kyung, a senior who coincidentally danced the last dance together, also expressed her regret through SNS, saying, "I wish (Pyo Seung-joo) could have played more volleyball if it was a better environment. I hope there will be more systems for players." 안전놀이터
Teams interested in reinforcing their capacities were naturally aware of this fact. Rumors spread that a certain team was seeking to recruit Pyo. However, the compensation that had to be paid to Pyo has hampered his bid. Pyo, who received 300 million won (37,500 U.S. dollars) in compensation for the previous season, is classified as a grade A player in the FA market. The team that will recruit him must pay "200% of the previous season's salary and one other than six protected players" or "300% of the previous season's salary" to the original team.
I want Pyo Seung-joo's skills, but it was true that he was burdened with the future of the club and paying an additional amount. It was not easy to remain apart from the will of Jeong Kwan-jang, who was seeking to transfer to the club in the Seoul metropolitan area for personal reasons. Various methods, including sign-and-trade, were discussed, but in the end, they did not reach a conclusion that everyone would be satisfied and reached the end of their retirement.
This is the background of the voice that the V-League FA compensation system should be reviewed once again. The Korean Basketball Federation's FA system can be a meaningful guide. In the event of an FA transfer, the KBL also has a compensation system according to the player's total remuneration ranking. However, the difference is that there are exceptions that do not apply compensation.
If a former club △ gives up renewing the contract with the free agent, if a free agent is appointed as a compensation player for the △ club, if a player who has not signed a contract before or before △ 35 years of age or older (base date: January 1 of every year) transfers to another club, the FA transfer will be made without compensation.
The final exception needs to be examined. This provision was newly added at the KBL board meeting on March 13, 2013. The move was aimed at minimizing cases where a veteran player has no choice but to retire after becoming lost in the FA market due to compensation issues. In fact, the case of KBL where this regulation was applied is Oh Se-geun's transfer to SK in May 2023. He left Jeong Kwan-jang (then KGC Ginseng Corporation) with him since his debut and found a new nest. It was possible to extend his career as there were no compensation players. He played an average of 18:54 in all 54 games during the 2024-2025 season, displaying stellar performance with his supporting role in winning the regular season title for the first time in three years. It coincides with Pyo's case.
Of course, it is not an easy decision to make. If the compensation hurdle is lowered, the competition for recruiting players could naturally overheat. We also have to pay attention to the controversy over bubble in the volleyball FA market. A high-ranking official of a certain team said, "Some teams are talking about eliminating the compensation player system altogether, which is the same as saying that a team without money should leave the league. If we don't buy and give away all the players with money, why are we drafting in the first place?" He even expressed his frustration.
However, there is a view that protecting them by limiting them to "veterans" removes any bubble from the FA market. Another volleyball source said, "Young players have no competitors, which is why their prices are skyrocketing. If even veteran players with skills are excluded from the market, the phenomenon of players being concentrated on certain players could worsen."
"The core of the FA bubble is supply. There should be more options for reinforcing power. The introduction of the Asian quarter was the reason, and the opinion that limits on foreign ownership should be increased is in the same vein," he said. "The current FA system has many issues to be repaired, including the short period of FA re-acquisition. It is time for a system tailored to the present, not the past."