Rodrigo Bentancur apologises for racist joke against Tottenham team-mate Son Heung-min

Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has issued an apology for using a racial slur against team-mate Son Heung-min during a TV interview, admitting he made a “very bad joke”.

Bentancur made the offensive remark related to Son’s Asian heritage when speaking to Uruguayan TV’s Canal 10 on the show Por La Camiseta.

The Uruguayan appeared to suggest that Son and all “his cousins” look the same.

Following an inevitable backlash from those who have watched the clip, Bentancur posted on social media that he had not intended to insult Spurs’ South Korean skipper.

“Sonny, brother! I apologise to you for what happened, it was just a very bad joke,” Bentancur said.

“You know that I love you and I would never disrespect you or hurt you or anyone else! I love you, brother!”

Son has previously spoken emotionally about the racism and stereotyping he had to endure during his career, especially as a youngster trying to establish himself in the professional game.

Two years ago, he told Korean TV about his experiences.

“I moved to Germany when I was young and went through so many really difficult, unimaginable moments,” he said.

“I faced a lot of racism. And while going through such a really difficult time, I had a lot of thoughts on my mind [that] I should get my revenge one day.”

In 2021, 12 men from across England and Wales were arrested or interviewed under caution “on suspicion of using words or behaviour, or displaying written material with intent to stir up racial hatred” against Son. The online abuse was directed at him during a Premier League fixture with Manchester United that year.

The Football Association has a long-standing policy of punishing those found to have used language deemed racist, with some high-profile players charged under different circumstances following incidents on and off the pitch.

Five years ago, Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva was fined £50,000 and banned for one match after a tweet about Benjamin Mendy which perpetuated a racial stereotype.

Most notoriously, another Uruguayan, Luis Suarez, was fined £40,000 and banned for eight matches for racially abusing Patrice Evra during a 2011 fixture between Liverpool and Manchester United.