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On Monday, Lamine Yamal, the Barcelona forward named the world’s best young footballer, waved a Palestinian flag during the club’s celebrations of their La Liga title after winning against football nemesis Real Madrid.
The snap taken from Barcelona’s club bus as it paraded the streets of the city quickly gained traction online. A post on the player’s Instagram account featuring several images of the footballer with the Palestinian flag received more than six million likes.
Rima Hassan, a far-left French member of the European Parliament, who was arrested and held in custody by French authorities for a post on social media deemed as fueling antisemitism, reacted positively with a Palestinian flag emoji.
Pep Guardiola, one of football’s most prominent figures and a former Barcelona player and coach, also commented: “A football player is a role model followed by millions, and his opinion is influential, so he should express it when necessary.”
Others were more critical.
Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, who manages Yamal, told reporters he did not agree with politics used in football, but suggested the player is old enough to know what he’s doing.
“I don’t like these things and I spoke with him. If he wants to do it, it’s his decision. He’s old enough, he’s 18 years old,” he said in comments Tuesday.
The German coach added that what Barcelona fans expect is for football “to make them happy, and that is the first thing we have to do.”
In the media reactions were split, with some suggesting that Yamal was bringing a highly delicate political issue to the forefront without enough context, while others praised the young player for taking a stance and using his platform followed by millions.
The revived debate over the role of political expression in sport, particularly with the World Cup jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico less than a month away.
In 2022, FIFA prohibited several captains at the Qatar World Cup from wearing armbands supporting LGBTQ+ inclusion as part of the ‘OneLove’ campaign, launched by the Royal Dutch Football Association. FIFA warned that players wearing the armband would risk receiving a yellow card, and the initiative was ultimately not used during the tournament.
FIFA regulations state that team equipment must not contain “political, religious, or personal slogans”. The tournament stadium code also prohibited banners, flags or flyers of a “political, offensive and/or discriminatory nature”.
The enforcement of these rules during the Qatar tournament prompted debate over consistency, with some arguing that different types of political expression were treated unevenly.
Yamal, who is endorsed by Adidas, Powerade, and Beats by Dr Dre, has been outspoken in his short, but highly lucrative career, against racism and a supporter of social causes.
His mother, Sheila Ebana, was born in Equatorial Guinea and moved to Spain in search of opportunities, where she met Yamal’s father, Mounir Nasraoui, who is of Moroccan origin. Yamal has spoken openly about his early struggles before reaching the top levels of international football.
Lamine Yamal was approached by Morocco’s national team but said his “heart” was with Spain and that he never doubted his decision to represent the Spanish side. He has also criticised those who have attacked his Muslim faith during football matches, describing them as “ignorant” and “racist.”
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