**North Korea’s Unconventional Approach to Premier League Football**
Television viewers in North Korea are accustomed to a heavy diet of war films, where only one side emerges victorious, alongside news reports infused with revolutionary fervor and relentless propaganda for the Kim dynasty. However, even in a nation that is highly cautious about external influences, the allure of Premier League football has proven irresistible, making it the most popular sport on North Korean screens. Just don’t expect to see live matches or any familiar faces like Gary Lineker.
Six months into the current Premier League season, the state broadcaster, Korean Central Television (KCTV), began airing matches in January, albeit heavily edited by the regime’s censors. This information comes from an analysis that examines how North Korea’s 26 million citizens engage with football, utilizing archives of North Korean broadcasts received via satellite and a database of TV schedules compiled by South Korea’s unification ministry. The analysis includes coverage of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the 2023 Women’s Asian Cup, as well as the Premier League and Champions League.
The broadcasts likely violate copyright laws, as North Korea does not possess the rights to air Premier League games, which could also contravene international sanctions aimed at curbing the country’s nuclear and missile programs. The method by which KCTV acquires this footage remains unclear.
In 2022, North Korean television featured matches from various European leagues, including English, German, French, Spanish, and Italian. However, since 2023, the focus has shifted exclusively to the Premier League, Champions League, and World Cup. The coverage is limited; a typical 90-minute match is condensed to an hour, with English graphics overlaid by Korean translations. Logos from the original broadcasters are often blurred, and at one point, even pitch-side advertisements were obscured, though this practice has since eased.
The coverage of the 2024-25 Premier League season commenced on January 13 with a match between Ipswich and Liverpool, aired 150 days after the actual event. The subsequent broadcast, just two days later, featured a match that had taken place the previous August.
These broadcasts lack commentary from pundits, as noted by analysts. There is no studio setup; viewers are taken directly into the game, accompanied by Korean commentary layered over crowd sounds. Most households in North Korea now have access to television, with KCTV being the most widely received national network.
KCTV broadcasts only a small fraction of the 380 Premier League matches each season, with televised games typically repeated at least three times. For the 2023-24 season, only 21 matches were aired.
