Acting Minister for Culture, Community and Youth David Neo publicly acknowledged and apologized for referring to Hong Kong players and fans as "idiots" in a video clip circulating on social media following the Asian Cup qualifier match between Singapore and Hong Kong on November 18.
The Incident and Apology
The controversial remarks were made in what appeared to be the Singapore national team's dressing room after the Lions secured a historic 2-1 away win at the Kai Tak Stadium, sealing their first-ever Asian Cup qualification on merit since 1984.
In the viral video, Mr. Neo was recorded telling the players:
"It was fantastic, the team was fantastic. You kena pressured by them, all the fans were bloody idiots, end up players also played like idiots... But you all played like lions."
The comments drew sharp criticism online, leading the Minister to respond to an Instagram commenter who suggested his words were "totally out of order."
Minister's Apology: Mr. Neo posted a response, saying: "Indeed I probably should have been more respectful. I take back what I said. The Hong Kong team were really tough and their fans were fully behind them. That’s something we should respect, and let’s also get behind our Lions.”
The Match Context
The win was a massive achievement for Singapore football, ending a long drought of merit-based qualification for a major continental tournament. The atmosphere at the stadium was intense, largely due to the vociferous 47,762-strong home crowd backing Hong Kong.
Despite the loss, the Hong Kong team (World No. 148) played a strong game, opening the scoring in the 15th minute through Matt Orr. However, Singapore (World No. 155) fought back in the second half with goals from Shawal Anuar and Ilhan Fandi, which sealed the victory and qualification for the 2027 Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia.
Public Reaction
The incident sparked mixed responses from netizens:
Call for Discretion: One commenter suggested that the remarks should have remained private, stating, "What’s said in the dressing room, should’ve stayed in the dressing room. Let’s move on. Let’s not let this distract us from the real goal of improving Singapore football.”
Defense: Another user added a comparative context, stating, "To be fair, the speech in the Hong Kong locker room would have been 1,000 times more colourful."
Criticism: Conversely, a third netizen called the incident "very bad sportsmanship."
Despite the controversy over the language used, Mr. Neo's official Instagram account did feature another video from the same setting, showing him celebrating with the team and telling them "we really made history tonight," garnering a positive, raucous reaction from the players.
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