North Korea Bans Tottenham Hotspur Matches from Broadcast Due to South Korean Captain Son Heung-min

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has prohibited the broadcast of Tottenham Hotspur matches within the country, primarily due to the team's captain, Son Heung-min, who hails from South Korea.

This directive aligns with North Korea's longstanding policy of excluding any sports content featuring South Korean athletes. Consequently, Premier League games involving Tottenham Hotspur are absent from North Korean state television.

This restriction extends beyond Tottenham Hotspur. Matches involving Wolverhampton Wanderers, which includes South Korean forward Hwang Hee-chan, and Brentford, featuring South Korean defender Kim Ji-soo, are similarly barred from broadcast. These measures reflect the North Korean regime's broader stance of limiting exposure to South Korean cultural and political influence within its borders.

Despite these prohibitions, North Korean state broadcaster Korean Central Television (KCTV) continues to air selected Premier League matches, albeit with significant modifications. These broadcasts are heavily edited, reducing the original 90-minute games to approximately 60 minutes, and are shown several months after the actual match dates. Additionally, any logos or graphics associated with the original broadcast are obscured or replaced with Korean text.

The decision to exclude matches featuring South Korean players underscores the political tensions between North and South Korea. While international sports coverage offers North Korean viewers a rare glimpse into global events relatively free from state propaganda, the regime remains steadfast in its efforts to minimize South Korean cultural and political influence within its borders.