REVEALED: Tottenham superstar Son Heung-min REFUSES to hold fans’ iPhones for their selfies with him – because of his sponsorship deal with Samsung

• Son Heung-min became an ambassador for tech giant Samsung this summer 
• A TikTok video shows the Spurs star refusing to hold a fan’s iPhone for a selfie
• Listen to the latest episode of Mail Sport’s podcast It’s All Kicking Off

A viral video has shown Son Heung-min refusing to hold a fan’s iPhone as they asked him for a selfie – because of his sponsorship deal with a tech rival.

The video on TikTok shows a fan offering their iPhone to the South Korean star so he could take a selfie of them together.

But Son, upon realising what product she was offering for him to hold, put his hands together apologetically and explained that he couldn’t take the picture but was happy for the fan to do so instead. 

The video then shows Son being offered a phone from another fan, where he was happy to take the selfie on this occasion with a supporter who was holding up a Tottenham shirt with his name on.

As part of a sponsorship deal with Samsung, Son can’t take his own selfies or touch phones belonging to fans if the product belongs to a rival company. 

A video on TikTok shows Tottenham star Son Heung-min unable to hold a fan’s iPhone to take a selfie due to his contract with Samsung as a brand ambassador

The video then shows Son is happy to take the selfie of a fan who owned a Samsung product

Son cant hold fans iphone to take a selfie due to his contract with samsung. #son #sonny #heuingminson #sonheungmin #spurs #tottenhamfc #tottenhamhotspur

The South Korean international became a brand ambassador for Samsung earlier this summer. 

His contract with them means that fans who don’t have a Samsung phone will have to take the selfies if they ever come across the Tottenham star.

It’s not the first instance where a phone manufacturer has been particularly touchy about the use of their products in wider media.

‘Knives Out’ director Rian Johnson famously revealed that Apple will only permit the use of iPhones in films and onscreen as long as villains aren’t the ones using them.

In guidelines on how its products should be depicted by developers promoting an app or accessory, Apple says the product must be ‘shown only in the best light, in a manner or context that reflects favourably on the Apple products and on Apple Inc.’

Apple isn’t alone in ensuring its products are seen in the best possible light when used by characters in film and television.

‘All brands have stipulations for how they want to be used and seen on screen,’ Darryl Collis, product placement specialist at Seesaw Media told the Guardian.

The South Korean international became a brand ambassador for Samsung earlier this summer

Son’s last Instagram post was promoting Samsung as part of their ‘Everyday SmartThings with Son’ campaign

‘It is common for some brands not to want to be associated with a bad guy, or for an alcohol or car brand not to want be linked with characters being drunk.’

Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle once said in an interview that Mercedes cars can be seen in the movie – but weren’t product placement.

When the car company saw the movie after release they had no problem with it being seen in a posh housing estate but not when it was driving round a slum.

Since linking up with Samsung, Son has regularly promoted their products on his Instagram account. 

At the time of writing, Son’s last Instagram post was promoting Samsung as part of their ‘Everyday SmartThings with Son’ campaign.

The video shows the 31-year-old lounging at home while promoting their products including televisions, refrigerators, watches and phones. 

Son is highly-sought after by companies to become an ambassador of their products, in part thanks to his status as the biggest sports star in South Korea.

Son has enjoyed a fine start to the Premier League season, scoring a hat-trick against Burnley

He has also linked up with brands such as Calvin Klein, Burberry, Gatorade and insurance company AIA Singapore 

Son has enjoyed a fine start to the season, following his struggles last campaign.

After jointly winning the Premier Golden Boot in 2021-22, last season he only netted 10 league goals.

This season he has netted three goals in four games, all of which came as part of a hat-trick in the 5-2 victory over Burnley.

Source: Read Full Article