North Korea Mentions 'Son Heung-min' for the First Time in World Cup Broadcast

Baek Seung-ho Shot Scene Highlight Video
Not Broadcasting Korean Matches but Airing Brazil Match

North Korea's Korean Central TV broadcast a recorded replay on the night of the 7th (local time) of the Round of 16 match between South Korea and Brazil at the 2022 Qatar World Cup held at Stadium 974 in Doha, Qatar on the 5th. The photo shows South Korea national football team captain Son Heung-min shaking hands with Brazil's Thiago Silva and others, appearing on the broadcast without any significant mosaic censorship.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hee-jun] North Korea's Korean Central TV mentioned Son Heung-min, who showed a 'mask fighting spirit,' for the first time during the broadcast of the 2022 Qatar World Cup. It is noteworthy that North Korea, which had not broadcast the matches of the South Korean national football team that performed well in the World Cup, chose to broadcast only the round of 16 match in which South Korea was completely defeated.

Korean Central TV aired a recorded broadcast on the night of the 7th of the match in which the South Korean national team lost 1-4 to Brazil, a favorite to win, in the round of 16 held the previous day at the 974 Stadium in Doha, Qatar.

The announcer on Korean Central TV introduced before the broadcast, "Looking at the South Korean team, goalkeeper number 1 Kim Seung-gyu, defenders number 3 Kim Jin-su, 19 Kim Young-gwon, 4 Kim Min-jae, 15 Kim Moon-hwan, midfielders number 11 Hwang Hee-chan, 6 Hwang In-beom, 5 Jung Woo-young, 10 Lee Jae-sung, forwards number 7 Son Heung-min, the captain, and number 9 Cho Gue-sung are arranged." They also showed scenes of Son Heung-min shaking hands and talking with Brazil's captain Thiago Silva and others.

It is quite unusual for North Korea to mention South Korea or highlight South Korean players. Especially regarding Son Heung-min, the only previous mention was when he was playing for the German professional football club Hamburg in September 2012 against Dortmund, where they aired the match but referred to him only as "Son," omitting "Heung-min."

Even during this World Cup broadcast, North Korea thoroughly concealed the South Korean team.

They referred to the country not by its name but as "one team," and did not broadcast any matches involving the South Korean team at all. When broadcasting other countries' matches, if the South Korean flag appeared in the stands or Hyundai Motor advertisements were shown, they edited those out with mosaics. They also did not mention the fact that BTS member Jungkook performed at the opening ceremony.

North Korea Korean Central TV
[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, the broadcast of the Brazil match was aired almost unedited for about 100 minutes. Hyundai Motor advertisements were also not edited out. Since the Workers' Party Propaganda and Agitation Department directs the content and format of broadcasts, it is presumed that the North Korean leadership's intentions were reflected. Given that South Korea's advancement to the quarterfinals was eliminated, it was likely judged unnecessary to avoid broadcasting even the match in which South Korea was defeated.

Korean Central TV delivered the careers and movements of South Korean players, including Son Heung-min, in a relatively neutral manner without hostile expressions during the main broadcast.

The announcer explained, "(Son Heung-min) is the team's captain, 30 years old, and 183 cm tall. He plays for Tottenham Hotspur. He has participated in 107 international matches, first entering international matches in 2010, and has participated in 9 World Cup matches, scoring 3 goals in those games."

During the second half broadcast, the announcer mentioned, "Forward number 7 Son Heung-min is performing well in the front line, but in this match, Brazil's defenders are thoroughly defending Son Heung-min, so he is unable to find his rhythm." They also replayed a highlight video of Baek Seung-ho's shot, which was the only goal scored by the South Korean team in the second half.

Meanwhile, Korean Central TV is broadcasting recorded coverage of the 2022 Qatar World Cup with the support of the broadcasting rights for the Korean Peninsula, which were transferred by the three terrestrial broadcasters (KBS, MBC, SBS) to FIFA.