Lamine Yamal has criticised chants by Spain fans during a friendly against Egypt in Barcelona that police are investigating for Islamophobia and xenophobia.
Spain supporters chanted “who doesn’t jump is a Muslim”, prompting Yamal to respond on Instagram. He wrote that the chanting “was aimed at the opposing team and was not something personal against me, but as a Muslim it is still a lack of respect and something intolerable. To those who sing these things: using a religion as a form of mockery on a pitch shows you up as ignorant and racist.”
Catalonia’s regional police force, Mossos d’Esquadra, are investigating the chants, which have been widely condemned, including by the Spain coach, Luis de la Fuente, and Spain’s justice minister, Félix Bolaños.
Egypt’s national anthem was jeered before the 0-0 draw in a pre-World Cup friendly and authorities at the RCDE Stadium appealed to fans more than once over the PA system to refrain from making offensive comments. An anti-discrimination message was displayed on screen inside the stadium.
Bolaños posted on X: “Racist insults and chants embarrass us as a society. The far right will not leave any space free from their hatred, and those who remain silent today will be complicit.”
De la Fuente said: “I feel total and absolute repulsion towards any xenophobic or racist attitudes. They are intolerable.”
Spain were hosting Egypt, a majority-Muslim country, in a game that had been expected to be played in Qatar before the region was affected by the Iran war. Spain’s World Cup opponents include Saudi Arabia.
