Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal spoke out against Islamophobic chants during Spain’s match with Egypt.
Published on 3 April 2026
Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa says Spain is a tolerant country and not racist, despite Islamophobic chants during a national team match this week.
“Whoever doesn’t jump is a Muslim,” sang a section of the crowd at Spain’s friendly against Egypt on Tuesday at Espanyol’s RCDE stadium in Cornellà.
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Spain and Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal, who is Muslim, criticized the chanters as “ignorant and racist”.
Arbeloa defended Spain on Friday and insisted racist attitudes must be eliminated.
The Spaniard told reporters, “I think Spain is not a racist country. If it were, we would have a problem every weekend in all the stadiums.”
“I keep thinking that we have to eliminate any racist attitudes in stadiums and in society. … Spain as a country has to keep fighting to get rid of these attitudes.
“(However,) I think we are a great country, very tolerant, and with these types of situations, we should not generalize.”
In high-profile incidents in recent years Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior has been racially abused in several stadiums across the country.
In January 2023, Atlético Madrid fans hung an effigy of the Brazilian forward from a bridge near Real Madrid’s training ground.
Four months later, Vinicius was abused by fans at the Mestalla stadium in Valencia, in an incident which gained him worldwide support in his fight against racism.
In 2025, five Real Valladolid fans who racially abused Vinicius at a 2022 match were found guilty of committing a hate crime – the first such verdict in Spain in relation to insults at a football stadium.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick praised teenager Yamal for making a “great statement” by condemning those responsible for the abuse.
Flick said, “We’re all for inclusion. … It’s disappointing that a small number of idiots don’t understand this.”
“We all want to be respected. It doesn’t matter your colour, your religion, your region. Now is the time to change these ideas.”
Atletico coach Diego Simeone said the problem is related to a lack of respect in the world.
“This is a social problem globally, not about Spain or Argentina or Brazil or anywhere else,” Koch said.
“The respect that was lost many years ago – respect for parents, school teachers, police, club directors, coaches, presidents – … is lost today. And we don’t have that.”
Catalonia’s regional police said they were investigating the chanting, and Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called the incident “unacceptable”.
“We cannot allow an unruly minority to tarnish the reality of Spain, a diverse and tolerant country,” he said.
