15.02.2025 10:10
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has banned the broadcasting of Tottenham Hotspur matches in the country. This ban was imposed due to South Korean footballer Son Heung-min, who is the captain of Tottenham. In North Korea, matches of teams that include South Korean players, who are viewed as enemies, are not broadcasted.
Kim Jong-un has banned the broadcasting of Tottenham Hotspur matches in North Korea.
The regime does not allow the broadcasting of matches played by teams with South Korean players, whom they see as enemies. Tottenham's captain falls under this ban as South Korea's star Son Heung-min.
This means that North Korean citizens, who are allowed to watch Premier League matches before the 5:00 PM news, cannot see the North London club's matches on screens.
However, Jong-un may regret banning Son, 32, and Tottenham, who will play against his favorite team Manchester United tomorrow.
The report also revealed that last season's Premier League broadcasts in North Korea did not include Wolverhampton Wanderers, where South Korean forward Hwang Hee-chan played, and Brentford, where his compatriot defender Kim Ji-soo played.
In the secretive state, match broadcasts are reduced from 90 minutes to 60 minutes and are shown before news bulletins - about four months after they were played.
Tottenham fan Tom Bell, whose team is in 14th place in the league, said, "Given Spurs' performance this season, North Koreans are lucky they don't have to watch the matches."
These findings were part of a North Korea study by the independent U.S. think tank Stimson Center.
Although state television is filled with propaganda, according to the analysis, sports broadcasts are "one of the rare moments of the day when state television does not try to send an open or hidden message to its viewers."
Martyn Williams from the Center said, "We found this interesting. We saw a lot of football on KCTV. This is the main international sport they broadcast."
English football has also found fans among other dictators. The late Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro was an Arsenal fan, and Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe, who died in 2019, supported Chelsea.