LAFC fan denies racial slur allegations against Son Heung-min

A fan accused of directing a racial slur toward LAFC player Son Heung-min has issued a clarification, stating the remark was not the Chinese greeting ‘Ni Hao’ but rather the Spanish term ‘Mijo’.

The controversy began following an LAFC match against LA Galaxy at BMO Stadium, when video footage circulated on social media appearing to show a spectator shouting at Son. Many viewers interpreted the shout as a racial slur, leading to calls for the fan to have his season tickets revoked.

The individual, a long-time LAFC season ticket holder, released a statement via the ‘LAFC Fans’ channel explaining that ‘Mijo’ is a shortened form of the Spanish ‘Mi hijo,’ meaning ‘my son.’ He noted the term was intended as a friendly play on Son’s surname. The fan expressed regret over the backlash and stated he had contacted the club to clear his name.

The original poster who shared the video has since deleted the post and apologized, acknowledging that the incident was a linguistic misunderstanding.