Atletico Madrid have officially signed South Korea international Lee Kang-in from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth around €40 million. The 25-year-old, fresh off representing his country at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, has signed a five-year contract running until June 2031 and will wear the number 7 jersey.

Background

Lee Kang-in’s path to Atletico Madrid began at Valencia, where he joined the club’s youth academy at just 10 years old after his family relocated from Incheon, South Korea, to support his development. He made his first-team debut for Valencia in a Copa del Rey match in October 2018 and went on to make 62 appearances for the club before moving to Mallorca in August 2021.

At Mallorca, Lee Kang-in made 73 appearances across two seasons, developing into one of La Liga’s more promising attacking midfielders. That form earned him a move to PSG in the summer of 2023, where he spent three seasons under manager Luis Enrique, becoming a key part of the club’s recent European success.

Lee Kang-in’s position has generally been attacking midfielder, though he has also featured as a winger on either flank throughout his career, a versatility Atletico’s official announcement specifically highlighted. His return to Spanish football comes after Atletico previously showed interest in signing him during his Mallorca days, an approach that did not progress at the time.

Details

Reviewing Lee Kang-in’s stats across his career shows a player who has consistently contributed goals and assists without ever being a pure goalscorer. Looking at Lee Kang-in’s total goals, he scored 16 times in 124 appearances for PSG, also providing 16 assists, while picking up 12 trophies including three Ligue 1 titles and back-to-back UEFA Champions League triumphs.

For his country, Lee Kang-in has made 50 appearances since his senior debut in September 2019, scoring 11 goals and adding 14 assists, including a standout assist during South Korea’s group-stage win over Czechia at the 2026 World Cup. Fellow South Korean international Lee Jae-sung, who plays his club football at Mainz in Germany, has featured alongside him in several national team squads over the years, though the two are separate players often confused due to their similar names.

Looking across Lee Kang-in’s all clubs since turning professional, his career path reads: Valencia (2018-2021), Mallorca (2021-2023), PSG (2023-2026), and now Atletico Madrid. At Atletico, he arrives as a replacement of sorts for club legend Antoine Griezmann, who departed for Major League Soccer this summer after nearly a decade as one of the club’s most important players.

Atletico had already been busy in the transfer market before completing the Lee Kang-in deal, having previously signed Spain full-back Alex Grimaldo and Denmark midfielder Morten Hjulmand. Lee Kang-in is expected to line up alongside recent arrivals Alex Baena and Ademola Lookman as part of a reshaped attacking unit under the club’s new-look squad.

On his personal life, searches for Lee Kang-in’s wife are common online, but the midfielder is not married. He has been in a long-term relationship with Park Sang-hyo, a member of South Korea’s Doosan Group family, since the pair were introduced through his older sister in early 2024. The couple has been seen together at several high-profile events, including Champions League finals, though neither has publicly confirmed marriage plans.

Quotes

PSG’s official statement on the transfer credited Lee Kang-in with playing 124 matches for the club, scoring 16 goals, and contributing to 12 trophies, including two consecutive Champions League titles, while thanking him for his contribution and wishing him well for the rest of his career.

Atletico Madrid’s official announcement described Lee Kang-in as a talented left-footed midfielder capable of playing in attacking midfield or on either wing, pointing to his vision, ball control, and passing and shooting ability as standout qualities.

Reports from Spanish and French outlets, including RMC Sport, indicated Lee had fallen out of favor under Luis Enrique’s system at PSG, being used more often as a rotational option than a guaranteed starter, which analysts have cited as the main reason behind his search for regular first-team football elsewhere.

Impact

The transfer carries symbolic weight for Atletico Madrid, since the club specifically needed to replace the creative influence Antoine Griezmann provided for nearly a decade. Whether Lee Kang-in can fill that role, even partially, will say a lot about how fans and coaching staff view the new season from the start.

Is Lee Kang-in good enough to lead this new-look Atletico attack? His track record points to a player who contributes goals and assists in a supporting creative role rather than acting as a focal-point striker, which could work well alongside Griezmann’s old goal-scoring threat rather than trying to replicate it outright.

For South Korean football, the move keeps one of the country’s biggest current stars playing regularly in one of Europe’s top leagues, following in the footsteps of past Korean stars who built strong reputations in La Liga and other major competitions. His continued visibility also helps sustain interest in South Korea’s senior national team ahead of future international competitions.

For PSG, the sale represents a notable profit on a player they signed for a lower fee from Mallorca in 2023, while freeing up space in their squad as the club continues chasing other transfer targets this summer.

Conclusion

With his contract now running through 2031, Lee Kang-in’s long-term future appears settled at Atletico Madrid, barring any major change in circumstances. Attention will now turn to preseason, where fans and coaching staff will get their first look at how he fits alongside Alex Baena and Ademola Lookman in Atletico’s reshaped attacking setup.

Whether this move ultimately proves as significant as his previous transfers will depend on how quickly he adapts to a new system and city, but for now, Lee Kang-in returns to Spanish football as one of the more experienced and decorated attacking midfielders in La Liga.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which team is Lee Kang-in?

As of this transfer, Lee Kang-in plays for Atletico Madrid in Spain’s La Liga, having signed a five-year deal through June 2031 after moving from Paris Saint-Germain for a reported fee of around €40 million. Before joining Atletico, he spent three seasons at PSG, where he won multiple trophies including back-to-back Champions League titles, and prior to that played for Mallorca and Valencia in Spain, where his professional career began as a youth academy player.

Did Lee Kang play for Valencia?

Yes, Lee Kang-in began his professional career at Valencia, joining the club’s youth academy at age 10 after his family moved from South Korea to Spain to support his development. He made his first-team debut in a Copa del Rey match in October 2018 and went on to make 62 appearances for the senior team, including helping Valencia win the Copa del Rey that same season, before eventually moving on to Mallorca in 2021 as his career progressed.

Who is the legend of Atlético Madrid?

Atletico Madrid has had several legendary figures throughout its history, but in recent memory, Antoine Griezmann stands out as one of the club’s most important and beloved modern-era players, having spent close to a decade at the club across two separate spells before departing for Major League Soccer this summer. Beyond Griezmann, historical club legends include players like Fernando Torres, a boyhood fan turned club captain, and earlier stars from Atletico’s long La Liga and European history, all of whom remain closely tied to the club’s identity even as new signings like Lee Kang-in arrive to build the next era.