Key facts
- Former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy made racist comments about the French men's football team.
- Rajoy's remarks alluded to the African origins of some French players.
- The comments were published in the Spanish daily El Debate.
- French Communist Party leader Fabien Roussel and French MP Pierre-Alexandre Anglade condemned the remarks.
- Spain's Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) also criticized Rajoy's statements.
Former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has ignited a backlash with racist comments targeting the French men's football team, published in the Spanish daily El Debate. Rajoy, who led the Spanish government from 2011 to 2018, described the French team as a "very high-level squad. Of course, without Frenchmen," an allusion to the African heritage of some players.
His remarks drew sharp criticism from political figures in both France and Spain. Fabien Roussel, leader of the French Communist Party, denounced the comments on X as "blatant racism." Pierre-Alexandre Anglade, a centrist French MP and president of the National Assembly's European affairs committee, labeled the statement "a grave insult against our French team and against our country."
Spain's Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) also issued a statement, calling Rajoy's comments "shameful" given his former position as Prime Minister. Rajoy's article also included a jab at the Spanish left, expressing dislike for "either the Devils or the reds," a reference to the Belgian team.
These comments come shortly after Hebe Casado, deputy governor of Argentina's Mendoza province, faced similar criticism for calling the French team an "African team, without any manners" on social media after France's victory over Paraguay.