Seoul: The South Korean football league is set to welcome foreign-born goalkeepers once more starting in 2026, ending a 27-year restriction aimed at providing more opportunities for homegrown keepers, as announced by officials.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the Korea Professional Football League (K League) reached this decision during its third board of directors meeting of the season, which was held last Thursday. The league's decision will enable teams to sign goalkeepers from overseas starting next year. This marks a significant policy shift from the mid-1990s when the league imposed a cap on matches for foreign-born keepers to nurture local talent. By 1999, a complete ban on signing foreign goalkeepers had been enforced across all K League teams.

The K League highlighted that the current landscape of the league has expanded, with 12 teams in the top-flight K League 1 and 14 in the K League 2. This expansion is expected to maintain sufficient opportunities for South Korean goalkeepers, even as foreign netminders enter the league.

Additionally, during the board meeting, the league dismissed an appeal from FC Anyang. The club was fined 10 million won (approximately US$7,300) on June 5 due to their owner Choi Dae-ho's public criticism of officiating. Choi, who also serves as the mayor of Anyang in Gyeonggi Province, had held a press conference on May 20, where he criticized referees and accused officials of bias against his club.