“We are brothers, he made a mistake and has apologized”, the South Korean stated
Tottenham Hotspur forward Son Heung-Min shared that his teammate Rodrigo Bentancur has apologized for making a racial slur. Bentancur’s remark came during an appearance on Uruguayan TV when a presenter asked for a Tottenham shirt. Bentancur responded, “Sonny’s? It could be Sonny’s cousin too as they all look the same,” which he later acknowledged as a “very bad joke” on Instagram.
“I’ve spoken to Lolo,” said Son. “He made a mistake, he knows this and has apologized. Lolo would not mean to ever intentionally say something offensive. We are brothers and nothing has changed at all. We’re past this, we’re united, and we will be back together in pre-season to fight for our club as one.”
The incident drew significant attention, with anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out reporting a “significant number” of complaints about Bentancur’s comment, highlighting “a wider issue that heavily affects East Asian and wider communities.”
⚪️🇰🇷 Son: “I’ve spoken with Rodrigo Bentancur. He made a mistake, he knows this and has apologised”.
“Lolo would not mean to ever intentionally say something offensive. We are brothers and nothing has changed at all”.
“We’re past this, we’re united, and we will be back together… pic.twitter.com/cmdk68DT9S
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 20, 2024
Tottenham addressed the situation by stating they have been assisting in ensuring a positive resolution between the players. The club’s statement read, “This will include further education for all players in line with our diversity, equality, and inclusion objectives. We fully support that our captain Sonny feels that he can draw a line under the incident and that the team can focus on the new season ahead.”
Tottenham emphasized their commitment to diversity, saying, “We are extremely proud of our diverse, global fanbase and playing squads. Discrimination of any kind has no place at our Club, within our game, or within wider society.”
