I have experienced racism a thousand times – Lamine Yamal

Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal says he has experienced racism “a thousand times”, because people are unaware their comments or behaviour are offensive.

The Spanish Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia, a government agency, said earlier this year that the 19-year-old and Real Madrid winger Vinicius Jr were the most frequent targets of online racist abuse in Spain in the final quarter of 2025.

Lamine Yamal was among the Barca players targeted by racist abuse during El Clasico against Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in October 2024.

And in an interview with broadcaster Movistar, the winger, who helped Spain to win the World Cup in July, said he had encountered racism on a regular basis during his rise to prominence.

“A thousand times. People are indirectly racist toward you, but maybe don’t realise it,” he said.

“There are a lot of comments or looks that are racist, and they don’t even notice.

He added: “If someone calls me Black, it’s not going to bother me at all; ultimately, I’m Black, I’m not any other colour.

“Another thing is whether it’s good or bad, whether they’re saying it to offend me.

“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.”