When Lionel Messi (Inter Miami), Lee Kang-in (Paris Saint-Germain), and Kim Min-jae (Bayern Munich) switched teams, their clubs disclosed the “minimum” length of their contracts. Miami announced that it had “signed Messi until 2025.” PSG said on its website that it had “signed Lee Kang-in until 2028.” “We have signed Kim Min-jae until 2028,” Munich wrote on its website. The clubs took a photo with the player in a jersey with the final year of his contract.
While the clubs did not directly announce salaries or transfer fees, the general terms of the deals were revealed by club brass, media reports, and player salary sites. “Messi’s salary is between $50 million and $60 million,” Miami owner Jorge Mas said. The media estimated the transfer fee for Lee at €22 million, with some reports suggesting a 20% cut. Munich’s buyout payment to Napoli was reported to be €50 million, while Kim Min-jae’s salary was reported to be €12 million.
A popular site that covers soccer player transfer fees, market prices, and more is TransferMarkt. If you search for Messi, Lee Kang-in, or Kim Min-jae, you’ll see their market value by year, transfer type, and transfer fee. Messi made both of his transfers on a free transfer. Lee Kang-in cost €22 million and has a contract until June 30, 2028. A search for Kim Min-jae shows a transfer fee of €50 million and a contract expiration date of June 30, 2028. If you go to one of the paid sites that specializes in analyzing salaries, you’ll see the monthly salary, base salary, and bonus of world-class players. According to this site, Lee Kang-in earns €7.27 million and Kim Min-jae earns €12 million. Messi’s contract with Miami runs through December 31, 2025, and he makes $54 million a year. Most of the terms of these contracts are public, even for world-class players.
But in the Korean professional soccer, everything is private. Only signings and transfers are announced. Even the contract periods that were announced in the past are now hidden. Transfer fees and salaries are also private. The only time the K League releases salaries is at the end of the year. Only a few of the highest-paid players in the entire K League are announced, but the majority of players’ salaries are not disclosed. New contracts signed at the beginning of the year are not disclosed at all, so it is impossible to compare a player’s performance, salary, and transfer fee throughout the new season. If you ask the club, you’ll get a “mutual non-disclosure agreement” or “we can’t disclose personal information” response. Clubs say it’s hard to manage players when their salaries are publicly available. They say there’s nothing they can do to stop richer clubs or foreign clubs from snapping up players. It’s like they don’t understand the business of soccer.
Even the best players in the world have publicly available contracts, salaries, and transfer fees. The buyout amount is rarely disclosed. However, the terms of Korean professional soccer players’ contracts are hidden. Even if you search for K-Leaguers on TransferMarkt, most of them do not specify the contract period or transfer fee.
The KFA and professional clubs are reluctant to disclose the terms of their contracts. In the world of soccer, where the entire world is one market, buying and selling players is a daily occurrence. They know that trying to hide information will not help them in transfer and salary negotiations. Not only world stars in various sports, but also Korean baseball, basketball, and volleyball players have their salaries publicly available, so does that mean their privacy is not important?메이저사이트
One of the tentative conclusions of a reporter covering soccer’s backroom connections is this.
Not disclosing contract terms is a ploy to hide their incompetence and backroom deals under the guise of privacy.