Newcastle pulls potentially offensive kit promo

Newcastle United and Adidas were “forced to withdraw a promotional video for the club’s new third kit” on Tuesday, less than 24 hours after it was first aired, “because of fears of offending Koreans.” Newcastle -- which will take part in the Coupang Play Series in South Korea at the end of the month -- released a video for the Adidas kit through their social media channels, which features singer Sam Fender “playing at the Tyneside Irish Centre, showed a Japanese fan called Satoshi waving a Newcastle flag modelled on an imperial Japan military flag." The Japanese occupation of Korea, which lasted from 1910-45, “involved Japan’s attempts to assimilate Koreans culturally and politically.” Satoshi “was flown to England especially for the video, which took four days of filming.” The club has admitted it was “alerted to the offensive nature of the flag and took down the video.” The video “was then reposted with Satoshi laughing, with the offending flag removed” (London TIMES, 7/1). Meanwhile, the club is “currently undergoing a makeover off the pitch amid plans to redesign the club’s crest in a move that will provoke conflicting emotions among supporters" (London TELEGRAPH, 7/2).