Sungshin Women's University professor Seo Kyoung-duk has called for a formal apology from a local YouTuber who made a racist "eye-pulling" gesture directed at South Korean national team footballer Lee Kang-in.
"This YouTuber must issue a public apology," Seo said Sunday. "The club also needs to take greater care to ensure this kind of incident never happens again."
According to Seo, Lee was subjected to a racist act online after scoring in Atletico Madrid's La Liga debut match on Thursday. During a live YouTube reaction stream, the YouTuber pulled the corners of both eyes outward with index fingers immediately after Lee's goal, while celebrating the score.
"Pulling one's eyes into a slant with fingers has long been identified as a representative racist gesture used to demean Asians," Seo said.
Seo also noted that a similar incident had sparked controversy at the recent North and Central America World Cup, where a Korean YouTuber faced racial discrimination by a Mexican football fan at the venue during the group-stage opener between South Korea and the Czech Republic. "The YouTuber must issue a public apology," he said.
Lee came on as a second-half substitute Thursday and scored the opening goal to lead Atletico Madrid to a 2-0 victory over Malaga in the 2026-2027 La Liga Round 1 home season opener at Riyadh Air Metropolitano in Madrid, Spain.
Spanish media heaped praise on Lee, who marked his first appearance in an Atletico Madrid shirt with a standout debut goal.
mss@heraldcorp.com
