"I really am Black": Lamine Yamal breaks his silence on the racist night at the Bernabéu
He was subjected to racism a thousand times!
In a shocking admission that laid bare the ugly face of bigotry in Spain's stadiums, young Barcelona star Lamine Yamal opened his heart and spoke for the first time in detail about the racism he was subjected to in the heart of the Santiago Bernabeu.
The winger's comments, made ahead of his awaited appearance on the "Universo Valdano" programme, sparked a wide wave across the Catalan sporting scene. So important was what he had to say that "Movistar Plus" moved the episode's broadcast to Friday evening, as reported by "Mundo Deportivo".
Jorge Valdano put the question to Yamal directly during the interview: "Have you ever experienced racism directly?" The young player's response was both shocking and wise.
Yamal was pointing to the famous Clasico of 26 October 2024, when he and teammate Raphinha, while celebrating a goal, faced racist chants and xenophobic insults from the Bernabeu stands, such as "filthy black", "filthy Moor" and "filthy immigrant".
Lamine said frankly: "Yes, a thousand times. People are racist towards you indirectly, but perhaps they do not realise it. There are many comments, many looks, that often carry a racist character and they do not realise it".
He added: "For example, the usual video from the Santiago Bernabeu where they were directing foul words at me and Raphinha, and people were surprised by my reaction. In the end, that person who called me (black) will not bother me at all, because I am black and not any other colour".
Speaking in a tone mature beyond his years, he continued: "As for the matter of whether that is right or wrong, that is another thing, because he said it to me in an insulting way. It is wrong, but what I will not do, while I am playing a match that people have paid for tickets to watch me, is to get angry at someone who was not respecting me".
La Liga had notified the National Police of the incident as soon as it occurred. Real Madrid, meanwhile, opened an internal investigation that revealed a minor was behind the insults.
The juvenile prosecutor's office banned the minor from entering all stadiums hosting official football competitions for 12 months. He was also ordered to perform 30 hours of community service and to offer the player a formal apology.
