Son Heung-min Betrayed... Teammate Bentancur Apologizes for 'Terrible Joke'

Controversial Remarks During Interview with Uruguayan Media
Apology to Son Heung-min Issued via SNS as Issue Escalates

Rodrigo Bentancur, a midfielder for Tottenham in the English Premier League, made a racially insensitive joke about his teammate Son Heung-min during an interview with a media outlet in his home country, Uruguay. Following the controversy, he issued an apology via social media.

On the 15th, foreign media including the sports specialist outlet The Athletic reported, "Bentancur apologized after making a terrible joke about Son Heung-min during a live TV interview." Bentancur, who was resting in his hometown ahead of the Copa America, appeared on the Uruguayan broadcast program 'Por la camiseta.'

Midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur of Tottenham in the English Premier League and his apology posted on social media
[Image source: Bentancur Instagram capture]

This program is hosted by Uruguayan football journalist Rafa Cotelo, who meets with Uruguayan national team players to have various conversations. When Bentancur was asked by the host, "I already have your jersey. I would like you to bring me the Korean (Son Heung-min)'s jersey," he responded by asking, "Sonny?" (Son Heung-min's nickname) and said, "Even if you bring me Son Heung-min's cousin's jersey, I wouldn't know the difference. Anyway, they look the same." This statement revealed a racially discriminatory perception that "they (East Asians) all look the same."

Bentancur's remarks immediately sparked controversy. Especially, Son Heung-min's fans criticized the comments as inappropriate, failing to consider the pain Son has endured from multiple instances of racial discrimination by spectators during matches. After these criticisms, Bentancur belatedly realized his mistake and posted an apology on his SNS.

He said, "Sonny! I apologize for what happened just now. What I said was a bad joke. You know how much I love you, right? I never meant to ignore or hurt you," apologizing directly to Son Heung-min. Bentancur is known to be close to Son.

In the 2022 Qatar World Cup, when South Korea and Uruguay were in the same group, Bentancur joked, "I always mess around with Son Heung-min," adding, "I will kick Son so he becomes a cripple in this World Cup." However, during the actual match, the two were seen embracing each other. Son also showed his support when Bentancur injured his knee in a match against Leicester City in February last year, asking for strength for his "recovering brother (Bentancur)." When Bentancur returned to play eight months later, Son brought him to the supporters to receive applause, demonstrating their close friendship.

Following Bentancur's remarks, past incidents of racial discrimination in South America resurfaced. In 2017, Colombia's Edwin Cardona made a rude gesture of pulling his eyes to mock Asians directed at Ki Sung-yueng. During the 2018 Russia World Cup, Mexican football fans posted photos with the eye-pulling gesture alongside messages thanking South Korea for helping defeat Germany, which also caused controversy.

Son Heung-min faced severe racial discrimination last year as well. On May 6, during an away Premier League match against Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in London, England, Son was substituted and left the field in the second half. At that time, a spectator supporting Crystal Palace was caught on broadcast camera making a side-to-side eye-pulling gesture toward Son.

After a police investigation, the spectator was identified as 44-year-old Robert Garland. The court fined him ?1,384 (approximately 2.22 million KRW) and ordered 60 hours of community service, banning him from all football stadiums for the next three years. Additionally, to prevent Garland from traveling abroad to watch football matches, his passport will be confiscated during international match periods.