The Egypt incident and the 2004 crisis raise England's fears against Spain: Tuchel prepares for the worst
Thomas Tuchel, the England manager, is preparing to remind his players of the measures and protocols in place to deal with racist abuse inside the stadiums, ahead of the anticipated clash against Spain tomorrow, Sunday evening, as part of the UEFA Nations League.
This fixture carries weight beyond the scoreline, rooted in a tense history of racial discrimination between the two sides.
Atletico Madrid's Metropolitano Stadium will host the game. It marks England's first trip to the Spanish capital since that infamous friendly against La Roja in November 2004, when several England players faced racist insults and chants from sections of the crowd at the Santiago Bernabeu.
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Ashley Cole, Rio Ferdinand, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Jermaine Jenas and Jermain Defoe were all targeted that night.
A fine for the Spanish Football Federation followed, an episode that left a clear mark on the relationship between the two teams.
England have played other matches on Spanish soil since, yet they have never returned to Madrid to face the national team. Their later meetings came in other cities, including Seville and Alicante.
Tuchel's comments land amid renewed controversy over racism in Spanish stadiums, following the friendly between Spain and Egypt in Barcelona on 31 March, which ended goalless.
A group of Spanish fans aimed anti-Muslim chants at the visitors that day, prompting organisers to broadcast warning messages on the screens and loudspeakers inside the stadium.
FIFA responded with a financial fine for the Spanish Federation. The governing body also ordered 15% of the stands to be closed at the stadium hosting Spain's next friendly, or those seats handed to community groups and organisations working to combat discrimination.
Speaking to French network RMC, Tuchel said he would brief his players on the procedures to follow should any violations occur on Sunday, recalling what unfolded on the previous visit to Madrid.
The German coach said: "Perhaps we should set aside 5 minutes to brief the players on the protocol, if there is a precedent in Madrid. It is important that the players know the protocol."
England, he explained, had already discussed the issue before the match against Serbia in Belgrade in September 2025. There are clear procedures for dealing with such incidents, he stressed, and the team would be ready to face them if they arose.
UEFA operate a three-stage protocol to counter racist and discriminatory behaviour inside stadiums.
Stage one begins with stopping the match and asking fans to cease the abuse over the loudspeakers.
Should it continue, the referee halts play again for between five and ten minutes, with players asked to leave the pitch temporarily.
Any further racist conduct after the restart hands the referee the final call: abandon the match.
