The Mexican who displayed an insulting gesture towards a Korean woman during the FIFA World Cup apologizes.

A Mexican national who displayed a racist gesture insulting a South Korean woman during a match at the FIFA World Cup tournament has publicly apologized after a video of the incident received severe criticism on social media. This controversial situation arose after a video was uploaded to the internet showing this individual, during a match between South Korea and the Czech Republic at the Guadalajara stadium in Mexico, behaving in a manner insulting to East Asians by pulling the corners of his eyes, and then dismissing it with a laugh.

The recipient of this offensive behavior is Yoon Su-jin, a South Korean social media creator with millions of fans, also known online as 'Ino Cat'. With over 6.6 million followers on YouTube and more than 2 million on TikTok, she encountered this experience when she attended the match held last Thursday night. A video clip she uploaded to her Instagram account clearly showed the Mexican national, Ulises Fernando Bernal Miramontes, seated behind her, making the racist gesture, and she had added a note about having to face such a racist experience while attending the World Cup.

The video clip became a major topic of discussion on social media, receiving over sixty-five thousand comments in response and being re-shared more than one hundred and twenty thousand times. Many people expressed strong disgust, stating that his behavior was utterly disgraceful and regrettable. A notable aspect was that a large number of Mexican nationals also condemned this act and apologized to the Korean young woman, emphasizing that this individual in no way represents the entire Mexican population.

It is reported that in the face of this strong public outcry and controversial situation, the Mexican national has also lost his professional position. As confirmed by a spokesperson who spoke with the New York Post, the institution has taken steps to immediately remove him from his position as president of a Mexican engineering association, specifically the College of Geomatics and Topographic Surveying Engineers of Jalisco (CITGEJ). In the match held last Thursday night, the South Korean team, after trailing in the first half, managed to secure a comeback victory, defeating the Czech Republic 2-1.

Following the incident, Bernal issued a public statement on Sunday, saying that he is sincerely remorseful for his actions. He stated that it is his responsibility to apologize publicly, as the video has circulated widely and elicited various reactions, and that he will not attempt to justify his mistake or offer different interpretations. He further mentioned in his statement that he has always strived to treat others with respect in his personal and professional life, and will continue to act in a way that reflects those values through his actions in the future.