Former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has come under fire after claiming France’s national football team “does not have any French players”, prompting accusations of racism from political leaders in both Spain and France ahead of the World Cup semi-final.
Rajoy made the remarks in a newspaper column while previewing Spain’s meeting with France. He acknowledged France’s recent success before writing that the two-time world champions “don’t have any French players”, despite describing them as a formidable opponent.
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez quickly condemned the comments.
“There are those who still measure belonging by surname, place of birth, or skin colour,” Sánchez wrote on X.
“Spain belongs to those who love it and work for it. Not to those who shame it with xenophobic statements.”
French politicians also rejected Rajoy’s remarks.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez called them “completely unacceptable”, saying they did not reflect what France stands for. Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure stressed that every member of the French squad holds French citizenship. He added that France is “a political nation united around the republican motto”.
French Communist Party leader Fabien Roussel compared the controversy with the recent racist abuse directed at France captain Kylian Mbappé by Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla following Paraguay’s World Cup exit.
Naïma Moutchou, France’s minister for overseas territories, said similar attacks emerge whenever France enjoys success. She urged the French Football Federation to consider legal action. The federation has already filed a complaint with Paris prosecutors over Amarilla’s comments targeting Mbappé.
Sánchez ended his message with a sporting note before Tuesday’s semi-final.
“France, we’ll see you in the semi-finals. May the best team win and may racism lose.”
The controversy has added fresh political tension before one of the tournament’s biggest matches, with Spain and France preparing to meet for a place in the World Cup final.
