The Premier League has been the best football in the world for some years now. However, the people in North Korea could not watch the spectacle in front of their eyes.
The reason for that is their supreme leader, Kim Jong-un, banned the broadcast of the English top-flight league in his country. However, this will change in the upcoming months.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has finally approved the broadcast of Premier League football, but only under some of the strictest conditions ever seen.
For North Korean to see Premier League football, it has to go through some strict restrictions.
In total, Kim wants to impose five restrictions before allowing his people to watch the game.
The first restriction, according to The Guardian, is that the games will not be shown live. Yes, the North Korean people will not be able to enjoy the thrilling action live.
Also, state editors will chop every match down from 90 minutes to just 60, removing anything the regime sees as “unnecessary” or “undesirable.”
The next restriction is banning all South Korean players from appearing on screen.
That means Brentford’s Kim Ji-soo and Wolves star Hwang Hee-chan will completely vanish from North Korean broadcasts.
Apart from that, any English text such as seen inside stadiums, advertising boards, score graphics, banners, will not appear in the broadcast.
Instead, the government will replace English texts with North Korean-made visuals, which will suit the regime and its people.
Also, the censorship includes a total wipe of any LGBTQ+ symbols, including rainbow flags regularly seen in Premier League grounds.
Despite all the restrictions, fans in North Korea will still get to watch some of the world’s best players.
But the version they see will be heavily edited and stripped of the Premier League’s usual atmosphere.
🇰🇵 North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has agreed to broadcast Premier League matches in his country, but under strict conditions:
1️⃣ Games will not be broadcast live and will be re-edited before airing.
2️⃣ Each game will be shortened to 60 minutes instead of the full 90 minutes.… pic.twitter.com/59Af8aOfJJ
— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) November 13, 2025
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