Lamine Yamal describes racist abuse during Real Madrid v Barcelona at Santiago Bernabeu

Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal has spoken in detail for the first time about racist abuse he received during last season’s Clasico at Santiago Bernabeu.

Yamal and team-mate Raphinha were targeted by racist chants and xenophobic insults from sections of the crowd as they celebrated a goal during the match on 26 October 2024. The abuse included phrases such as “dirty black”, “dirty Moor” and “dirty immigrant”.

The 18-year-old was speaking to former Real Madrid player Jorge Valdano for the programme Universo Valdano. The interview is due to be broadcast on Movistar Plus on Friday 18 at 21:00, with its scheduled airing moved because of the significance of what Yamal was expected to discuss.

Asked by Valdano whether he had ever experienced racism directly, Yamal replied: “Yes, a thousand times.”

He said racism was often expressed in ways that people did not recognise, including through comments and looks.

“I think people are indirectly racist towards you, but they do not realise it,” Yamal said. “There are many comments and many looks which are often racist, and they do not realise it.”

He then referred to the incident at Santiago Bernabeu, where a video showed supporters directing offensive comments at him and Raphinha.

“To give an example, there is the usual video from Santiago Bernabeu where they were saying offensive things to me and Raphinha, and people were surprised by my reaction,” Yamal said.

“In the end, I am not bothered at all by someone calling me ‘black’. I am black; I am not any other colour.”

Yamal said he understood that the manner in which the word had been used made it offensive, even though he did not want the incident to distract him during the match.

“Whether it was right or wrong is a different matter, because he said it to me as an insult,” he added. “It was wrong, but what I will not do while playing a match that people have paid to watch me in is get angry with someone who did not respect me.”

La Liga reported the incident to the Policia Nacional immediately after it took place. Real Madrid also began an internal investigation, which found that a minor had been involved in directing the abuse.

The juvenile public prosecutor’s office subsequently banned the minor from entering any stadium hosting official football competitions for 12 months. The punishment also required the individual to complete 30 hours of community service and issue a formal apology to Yamal.