Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal said he has faced racism “a thousand times” during his rapid rise to prominence, speaking about the issue in an interview with former Argentina international Jorge Valdano for Spanish broadcaster Movistar, as reported by BBC Sport on Friday.
When asked if he had experienced direct racist abuse, Yamal replied, “A thousand times.” He added that many people are “indirectly racist towards you, but maybe don’t realise it,” pointing to the comments and looks he has endured that he feels are racist yet go unnoticed by some.
Yamal’s experience is not limited to the pitch. In October 2024, footage surfaced of him, Raphinha and Ansu Fati being racially abused by fans during Barcelona’s El Clásico against Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.
He explained that being called “Black” does not bother him, as he identifies with that identity, but he is more concerned with whether the remark is intended to offend. “If someone calls me Black, it’s not going to bother me at all, ultimately I’m Black, I’m not any other colour,” Yamal said.
Yamal also stressed that he does not let supporter abuse distract him on the field. “But if I’m playing a match and they paid for a ticket to see me, I’m not going to get angry just because they disrespected me,” he said.
The Spanish Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia reported that Yamal and Real Madrid forward Vinícius Jr were among the most frequent targets of online racist abuse in Spain during the final quarter of 2025.
More recently, a Spanish government agency detected racist and Islamophobic content aimed at Yamal during the 2026 World Cup period, underscoring the ongoing nature of the problem.
<small>Source: The Sun Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>
