I've never seen this before. What a disgrace. It's the first time ever to postpone the opening game and disrupt the Cup. Why?

Sep 15, 2025

Hyundai Capital players who participated in the KOVO Cup and played their first game. Photo =KOVO

It's the first time ever that the opening game has been postponed and the cup tournament has been disrupted. Why on earth did this happen.

Hyundai Capital, a men's volleyball team that was participating in the 2025 Yeosu-NH Nonghyup Cup, will finally drop out. Hyundai Capital, the winner of last season's treble, played the opening game of the cup against OK Savings Bank at Jinnam Gymnasium in Yeosu on the 13th. However, he finally decided to drop out because there were no players to play in the competition.

There has been a constant buzz even before the opening of the cup competition. Initially, a total of eight teams were scheduled to participate in the tournament, including seven men's teams and the Thai invitation team, Nakhon Ratchasima. However, the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) applied a rule that countries cannot host the tournament during the World Championship. In the end, the Korea Baeguyeon Federation (KOVO) announced the cancellation of the men's competition in the process, and then again announced the resumption of holding it without foreign players and without participation in the Thai team.

Eventually, the competition resumed on the condition that the International Transfer Agreement (ITC) was restricted, foreign teams and foreign players were not allowed to participate, and registered players at the World Championship, including preliminary lists, but the problem is that Hyundai Capital does not have any participants. Heo Soo-bong, Park Kyung-min, and Shin Ho-jin have already been drafted into the World Championship national team, and Lim Sung-ha, Hwang Seung-bin, and Jung Tae-joon are also registered on the 25-member candidate list. Since even foreign players cannot play, they cannot even match the number of participants.

사진=KOVO

The federation dispatched officials to the Philippines, where the World Championship is underway, but failed to persuade the FIVB, and these conditions were finally confirmed on the night of the 14th. After internal discussions, Hyundai Capital had no choice but to decide not to participate in the remaining games of the Cup on the morning of the 15th. An official from Hyundai Capital said in a phone call with Sports Chosun that `Only eight players can play now. There is no Apogit Spiker or Libero at all. In the first game (against OK Savings Bank), the middle blocker even attacked because foreign players were absent and there was no apogit. In that situation, if you fall into the reserve entry (you can't do it). I can't show the fans a normal game, and it's a nuisance to the other team. In addition, if players with different positions play, the risk of injury increases considerably. It has no choice but to affect the regular season,' he said, explaining the reason for his absence. The federation stated that "the remaining matches of Hyundai Capital shall be treated as a default defeat in accordance with the results of Rule 6.4.1, unless the FIVB rules of play '6.4.2 team appears on the field on time without justifiable grounds.'

Hyundai Capital's team, which is scheduled to move to Cheonan home on the 15th, has to re-confirm its schedule before training in Nagoya, Japan next month. The Cup has also been reduced to a half-baked competition. Thailand's invitational team also came to Korea and lost the game, and as Hyundai Capital was excluded, six teams from the V League competed. It is true that there are many players who fall out, so the tension decreases. In addition, the remaining schedule is also inevitable to be completely revised.

Amid the absurd decision that led to the cancellation and resumption of the men's competition and the declaration of some teams not to participate. In fact, there was another similar problem. It is the postponement of the opening game of the regular league in the 2025-2026 season. It's an unprecedented situation. The men's opening match between Hyundai Capital and Korean Air, which was scheduled to be held at Cheonan Yu Gwan-soon Gymnasium on October 18, was postponed to March 19 next year, also due to lack of familiarity with the regulations.

The match between Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Co. and KB Insurance Co. held on the 14th. Photo=KOVO

According to the regulations set by the FIVB, it operates a club season in which league games begin in each country after a three-man break after the World Championship. This year's World Championship ends on September 28, so the league must start three weeks later, on October 20, but the league drew up a schedule without considering the rule, and the opening game was pushed to the last game next year.

The federation also appealed to the FIVB at this time, but it was not acceptable because all regulations were applied collectively. In the end, the game will be held on March 19 next year, and it is difficult to see the opening game of the regular league being pushed back by such absurd mistakes not only in volleyball but also in professional sports as a whole. A volleyball official said, `I've been watching professional volleyball for a long time, but I've never seen such a case in my life. It is an international disgrace, and it is a mistake that even its members are ashamed of themselves. "It's not easy to understand that the tournament continues to be disrupted after the regular season opener."

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.