Ex-Spain Prime Minister criticised for ‘racist’ remarks on France team
Spain’s former Prime Minister has been accused of racism by several leading French politicians after saying the France national team “does not have any French players.”
Mariano Rajoy, who served as the leader of the country’s government between 2011 and 2018, made the comment in a column for Spanish outlet El Debate previewing Tuesday’s World Cup semi-final between the two nations.
“They are currently ranked number one in the FIFA rankings. They also have a top-level squad. That said, they don’t have any French players, and they are playing very well,” he wrote on July 10.
🧐 La columna de @marianorajoy | ‘Hoy llegó el desquite’
«A los belgas se les conoce como los Diablos Rojos y a mí no me gustan ni los diablos, ni los rojos. Así que esta victoria me sabe mejor»
«Francia tiene, además, una plantilla de altísimo nivel. Eso sí, sin franceses» pic.twitter.com/uAkBj8cJMO
— El Debate (@eldebate_com) July 10, 2026
On Sunday, France’s interior minister Laurent Nunez said the comments from Rajoy were “absolutely unacceptable.” When the 71-year-old’s quote was relayed to Nunez on BFM TV in France, he condemned the words, adding: “That’s not what France is at all. France is a country of diversity where everyone can flourish and find their place.”
Olivier Faure, the leader of France’s Socialist Party, responded to Rajoy’s column on social media : “The French team consists only of French people. France is not an ethnic nation; it has no skin color or religion. It is a political nation united around the republican motto. Much to the dismay of the racist right.”
Naima Moutchou, the minister of the overseas for France’s territories, also posted criticism of Rajoy’s words: “After each France victory, the same obsessions and racist insults resurface. These are not slips. This is a methodical and normalized hatred of France and what it is.”
Moutchou also called on the France Football Federation (FFF) to take legal action over the comments.
Rajoy’s comments have also drawn criticism within Spain. The nation’s minister for transport, Oscar Puente, described Rajoy as a “post-Francoist idiot” and questioned his credentials as a “moderate” .
Also on Sunday, the French embassy in Madrid wrote: “Without wanting to get into a controversy, it is worth recalling the facts: all the players on the French national team are French. Of the 26 players, 23 were born in France. The three who were born abroad are French too.”
French newspaper Le Monde published an editorial in which they described Rajoy’s comments as “racist.” Le Monde added: “Since the start of the tournament, the French national team has been the target of several racist attacks.”
Have similar incidents happened before?
Earlier this week, the Paraguayan Senate passed a motion condemning “the discriminatory and racist expressions” of senator Celeste Amarilla against France captain Kylian Mbappe.
The 61-year-old lawyer had called the France striker a “colonized Cameroonian” following the World Cup last-16 match between the two nations on July 4.
She had previously criticized Mbappe on social media, quoting a post of the striker celebrating in front of Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill: “That brute never even learned to write. Instead of breast milk, he sucked on coconuts, and the most educated creatures he ever listened to were chimpanzees.”
Mbappe said Amarilla’s remarks were “despicable” and “racist”.
The FFF said last Monday it had reported Amarilla’s comments to the public prosecutor’s office “with a view to legal proceedings.” The Athletic has sought to clarify where such proceedings would take place.
Fabien Roussel, leader of the Communist Party in France, criticized the “crude racism” towards the France team, saying both the comments from Amarilla and Rajoy fall into that category.
He added: “Firstly a senator from Paraguay, now the former Prime Minister of Spain: they can’t help but express a crude racism to try to rile up our beautiful French team! May Mariano Rajoy be condemned! In solidarity with Les Bleus!”
Hier une sénatrice du Paraguay, maintenant l’ancien Premier Ministre d’Espagne : ils ne peuvent pas s’empêcher d’exprimer un racisme crasseux pour tenter d’énerver notre belle équipe de France !
Que @marianorajoy soit condamné !
Solidaire des bleus !
Tous derrières les bleus !— Fabien Roussel (@Fabien_Roussel) July 11, 2026
Rajoy and Amarilla are not the only politicians to question the nationality of the France squad.
Hebe Casado, the vice-governor of the Argentine province of Mendoza, posted on her social media: “Very good, Paraguay. The African team is weak on manners. I can’t stand Mbappé.”
Casado then shared a post by Argentine journalist Damian Di Pace, who said that if France wins the World Cup, “we should be honest and give it to the African Football Confederation”.
In the wake of those comments, the French ambassador to Argentina, Romaine Nadal, said Casado’s comments were of a “racist nature, which is beyond doubt” and he declared the vice-governor as a “persona non grata.”
France, who are aiming to reach a third successive World Cup final, play European champions Spain in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday in the first semi-final of the tournament, while England faces Argentina the following day in Atlanta, Georgia.