By Paolo Laudani
MADRID, April 1 (Reuters) – Spanish police launched an investigation on Wednesday into Islamophobic and xenophobic chants during Tuesday’s friendly against Egypt which also drew sharp criticism from Spain’s football officials and the government.
At the RCDE Stadium near Barcelona, the home ground of LaLiga club Espanyol, Spain supporters chanted “who doesn’t jump is a Muslim” during the World Cup warm-up match which ended in a goalless draw.
Justice Minister Felix Bolanos denounced the chants on social media platform X, reiterating the leftist government’s stance against the rise of the far right, which it associates with growing racism and xenophobia.
“Racist insults and chants shame us as a society. The far right will not leave any space free of its hatred, and those who remain silent today are complicit,” he wrote.
The incident highlighted concerns about racism in Spanish soccer, a recurring issue notably involving Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward Vinícius Jr., who has been targeted in high-profile cases.
The stadium displayed messages on overhead screens, reminding fans that taking part in acts of racism and xenophobia was a crime, yet the chants continued.
Spain’s coach Luis de la Fuente told reporters that the racist behaviour of fans was intolerable.
“They are not representative of football. They take advantage of football, as they do in other areas of life. We need to isolate these people from society,” he said.
The Spanish Football Federation said in a message on social media that it “stands against racism in football and condemns any act of violence inside stadiums”.
Catalonia’s regional police force, Mossos d’Esquadra, said on Wednesday they had opened an investigation into the incident, without providing further details.
(Reporting by Paolo Laudani, editing by Andrei Khalip and Ed Osmond)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.