Barcelona and Spain sensation Lamine Yamal has broken his silence after anti-Muslim chants marred Spain’s 0-0 draw against Egypt in a World Cup warm-up match at RCDE Stadium in Barcelona on Tuesday.
The 18-year-old winger, a practicing Muslim who observed Ramadan last month, shared a powerful statement on Instagram addressing the incident directly.
Yamal’s Full Statement
“I am Muslim, alhamdulillah. Yesterday in the stadium, the chant ‘the one who doesn’t boo is Muslim’ was heard. I know it was aimed at the rival team and it wasn’t something against me — but as a Muslim, it doesn’t stop being a lack of respect and something intolerable.
I understand that not all the fans are like that… but to those who sing these things: using a religion as a joke in a stadium makes you look like ignorant and racist people.
Football is for enjoying it and cheering, not for disrespecting people for who they are or what they believe in.
That said, thanks to the people who came to cheer us on, see you at the World Cup.”
Context of the Incident
The chants, reportedly variations of “Whoever doesn’t jump is a Muslim” or similar, were directed at the Egyptian team during the first half. Spain coach Luis de la Fuente and the Spanish Football Federation quickly condemned the behavior as “intolerable” and “xenophobic.” Catalan sports minister Berni Álvarez noted that Yamal was “deeply affected” by the episodes, even though the taunts weren’t personally aimed at him.
Yamal was the only player to feature in both of Spain’s recent friendlies and reportedly left the stadium without greeting fans after the match, according to local reports.
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