Court Temporarily Restores Ra Gun-ah’s KBL Player Status

Ra Gun-ah will temporarily retain his status as a registered Korean professional basketball player after a Seoul court suspended the Korean Basketball League’s registration hold.

The Seoul Central District Court’s Civil Division 50 accepted an injunction request filed by Ra and his club, Daegu KOGAS, against the KBL. The suspension runs until May 31, 2027. The court also temporarily recognized Ra as a registered player for the 2026-27 season.

The KBL had held back registration of Ra’s contract renewal after saying tax obligations had not been met. In May 2024, the league’s board decided that Ra’s naturalized-player contract would not be extended and that he would instead sign under the standard foreign-player arrangement. Under that decision, the club that most recently signed a foreign player would cover that player’s income tax for the relevant year.

Daegu KOGAS, which signed Ra for the 2025-26 season, was required to pay comprehensive income tax on income he earned from January to June 2004 while playing for Busan KCC. The club did not make the payment. The KBL finance committee warned that failure to pay by the May 29 renewal deadline would result in the loss of a first-round pick in the following season’s domestic-player draft.

The league later withheld Ra’s renewal registration and removed the draft pick. Daegu KOGAS challenged both measures in court. Its separate injunction request concerning the draft pick was also accepted, and that dispute will proceed as a main civil case after the KBL sought an order requiring the club to file the lawsuit.

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Until May 31, 2027, the effect of KBL’s decision to hold off on Ra Gun-ah’s player registration is suspended, and Ra Gun-ah is temporarily recognized as a registered player for the 2026-27 season of the Korean professional basketball league operated by KBL.