A South Korean student studying in China posts a video of her trip to FIFA World Cup 2026 in Mexico, where netizens found local fans chant alleged discrimination and misogyny to her. Photo: Screenshot from Bae Bon Yu-ri's Douyin account

Days after a Mexican fan was dismissed from his position for making a slant-eye gesture widely interpreted as a racist act to a South Korean influencer during a 2026 FIFA World Cup match in Mexico, netizens uncovered another alleged case of controversy, this time involving a South Korean student studying in China during her trip to Mexico for the tournament, according to a post shared on X on Tuesday.

The post included a video featuring South Korean student Kim Ul-hee, who studies in China and was seen distributing Chinese-style gifts to local football fans on the streets while attending the World Cup in Mexico.

According to the original video posted on her personal account on Douyin, Chinese version of Tiktok, several local fans interacting with her appeared to use the Spanish word "Chinito," a Spanish word to describe "'little Chinese person", according to Spanish language learning platform Bueno Spanish. while also allegedly chanting the phrase "amiga coreana, me chupa la macana," which some netizens said contains misogynistic and offensive language. 

Based on the student's reaction in the video, she did not appear to understand the meaning of the phrase at the time.

After the otherwise friendly video circulated online with more than 349 thousand likes and nearly 5,000 comments on Douyin, it sparked heated discussions among netizens, as a few netizens left comments under the video and said they had sent private messages to warn her about the expressions used by several people in video, though no response had been received. 

In the comment section of the X post, some netizens defended the usage of the term "Chinito." "Chinito is not meant to be racist. It's just descriptive, the same way calling someone black or white," one user wrote. Another user claimed: "The thing about 'chinito' isn't said as an offense but with affection. I know the word is misapplied, and that's why I never use it in the presence of an Asian person, but most people in Mexico don't see it that way.

However, other netizens explained that the chant carried both racist and misogynistic connotations and should be regarded as vulgar language. One expressed anger, arguing that regardless of whether "Chinito" could be defended as a colloquial expression, the latter phrase containing misogynistic language was indefensible.

"A good atmosphere for enjoying the World Cup was ruined by such inappropriate behavior," one netizen wrote.

"It's disheartening to see someone trying to spread kindness while traveling abroad end up facing discrimination," another said.

The incident marks a second alleged case of discrimination involving Asian fans during the ongoing World Cup after the earlier slant-eye gesture controversy.

Following the first incident, the Mexican fan involved, identified as Bernal, issued a public apology via video. South Korean media outlets including the Korea Herald and KBS World Radio reported that Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor at Sungkyunkwan University, had called on FIFA to take measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

Global Times