"Ignorant and racist": Lamine Yamal lashes out at the chants in Cornellà, which the Mossos are investigating

BarcelonaLamine Yamal has broken his silence over the Islamophobic chants this Tuesday at Cornellà-El Prat, on the occasion of a friendly between Spain and Egypt, with a publication on Instagram. "I know [the chants] were for the opposing team [Egypt], but as a Muslim person it is still a lack of respect and something intolerable [...]. To those who sing these things: using religion as a mockery leaves you as ignorant and racist people," wrote the Barça star and the main star of Luis de la Fuente's team. The footballer left the Espanyol stadium with his head down and without greeting the local fans.

The Mossos d'Esquadra have announced that they will investigate the events. The force made it public with a tweet on X, without giving further details: "We are investigating the Islamophobic and xenophobic chants from yesterday at the RCDE Stadium during the Spain-Egypt friendly match," the publication states. An announcement that comes after the Minister of Sports, Berni Álvarez, has "resoundingly" condemned the events that took place at the periquito stadium and has expressed his "concern" both for what he has described as a "serious episode" and for the reaction of the match organization. "They were slow with the protocols," he stated on SER Catalunya, from where he defended that the match "surely" should have been stopped. The minister, who explained that at halftime he communicated his opinion to those responsible for the Spanish and Catalan federations, considered that the warnings made to the public via the big screen and loudspeakers should have come much earlier, "right at the start of the match," to show more "forcefulness".

Once the match, which marked the Spanish national team's return to Catalonia and ended 0-0, was over, the president of the Spanish Federation (RFEF), Rafael Louzán, condemned the chants of "Muslim who doesn't jump" that were chanted in the stands, but wanted to downplay their significance, calling them "isolated and specific situations". He then lamented the impact of the events on the "image" of sport and football, which should be an "example".

Far from considering it an anecdotal event, the Sports Councilor, who attributed the chants to the "far-right," stated that "everything was very organized." "The feeling on the field was that many of the people singing probably had no connection to the world of sports," he said, and he distanced the Espanyol fans and the perico club from the "hate speech" that marked the match of la roja. Thus, although he said he would "perfectly understand" if FIFA imposed some kind of sanction for the events experienced in Cornellá, he asked to "try to ensure that the people at the stadium and Espanyol are not seriously affected".

"A sector of people in the field"

Regarding the Spanish government, the Ministry of Education and Sport has issued a statement in which it condemns "with the utmost firmness" the chants "of a xenophobic and racist nature" that were uttered by "a group of fans". The delegate of the state executive in Catalonia, Carlos Prieto, has also attributed them to "a sector of people from the stands". "At those moments, we already informed the organizers to activate the pertinent protocols, which was done," Prieto said via X, validating – unlike the Government – the reaction that occurred in the stadium. "But the stain remains there and should make us reflect as a society," he added.

In a similar vein, the Spanish coach, Luis de la Fuente, also expressed himself this Tuesday, stating his "total and absolute repudiation" of "any racist, xenophobic, and disrespectful attitude." The coach said that the chants had been "intolerable," although he qualified that "the vast majority of the stadium" had booed the "unpresentable" individuals who launched the Islamophobic slogans. "They must be identified and removed from society," he sentenced.

While awaiting possible sanctions, the image presented in Cornellà comes at a time of full preparation for the 2030 World Cup, organized by Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, and for which Barcelona wants to be one of the main host cities. In this regard, counselor Álvarez has said he is confident that all of this will not have repercussions. "We have to work hard so that beyond the sporting organization [...] this hate speech diminishes." In the Spanish government's statement, in fact, it is highlighted that the conduct seen in the stadium "does not represent, in any case, the immense majority of the Spanish fans, who understand and live sport as a space of respect and coexistence."

Puigdemont points to the PSC

Beyond the shouts against Islam – which ignored that Lamine Yamal, the star of the Spanish team and who was precisely cheered, is Muslim –, slogans such as "Pedro Sánchez, son of a bitch", "Gibraltar is Spanish" and "Puigdemont to prison" were also shouted in the stadium. A cocktail that the former president of the Generalitat has attributed to "the Hispanizing agenda of the PSC". "To cancel Catalanism, they stir up Spanish nationalism", tweeted the pro-independence leader, in response to another publication that criticized the fact of bringing the Spanish national team to Catalonia.

On the other hand, the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, has denounced that "what happened yesterday in Cornellá is the consequence of what the racist and xenophobic right has fueled for years", a situation that he believes has the "complicity" of some media outlets that "today are not putting their hand on their heads". "It is fascism, friends", he concluded.

ERC asks that giant screens not be installed in Barcelona during the World Cup

The Esquerra Republicana (ERC) group has also reacted to the events, asking the Barcelona City Council's governing team not to install giant screens in the city to watch the Spanish national team's matches during the World Cup. In this way, they believe they can "prevent security problems or possible racist incidents that could harm the image" of the Catalan capital.