Former Spanish PM's racist comment about French World Cup team sparks backlash

Racist comments by former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy about the French men’s football team sparked a backlash from France and Spain’s left-wing parties ahead of their World Cup match against Spain on Tuesday.

In an article published in the Spanish daily El Debate, Rajoy describe the French team as a “very high-level squad. Of course, without Frenchmen,” alluding to the African origins of some of the players.

Rajoy’s comments sparked reactions from socialists and communist parties in France and Spain.

Fabien Roussel, the leader of the French communist party, criticized Rajoy’s statement, writing in a post on X: “They can’t help showing blatant racism to try to piss off our beautiful French team!”



https://www.politico.eu/article/former-spanish-pms-racist-comment-about-french-team-sparks-backlash/