Europe

Real Madrid Players Stir Backlash After Obscuring Cueta T-Shirts

Were these players disrespecting Spain or do they have a right to their own opinions?

Published SEP 18

Real Madrid Players Stir Backlash After Obscuring Cueta T-Shirts

Story

Above: Real Madrid players Vinícius Jr. and Kylian Mbappé ahead of a game at Martinez Valero Stadium in Elche, Spain on Sept. 15. Image credit: Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto/Getty Images

The Facts

Soccer players from the Spanish side Real Madrid faced backlash this week after obscuring t-shirts expressing solidarity with Cueta, the Spanish enclave in northern Africa that was overrun with over 70,000 undocumented migrants from Morocco.
Al Jazeera
Le Monde
Players from both sides against the team's fixture with Elche on Tuesday were asked to wear shirts that read "Todos somos caballas" — translating to "We are all mackerels," a colloquial term for the residents of Cueta — ahead of the game, but Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius Jr. and Ibrahima Konaté rolled up their shirts to cover up part of the message.
Al Jazeera
Le Monde
The move sparked a wave of online backlash, largely from right-wing groups. A spokesperson from the conservative Popular Party said she felt "deep shame" over the incident while Ultras Sur, a Real Madrid fan group that's been banned from the stadium, described it as "unacceptable" and demanded public apologies.
France24.com
The Times of India
Ultras Sur on X
It was also criticized by Javier Tebas, president of the Spanish league LaLiga, who described it as "very wrong." He argued it was "an institutional act, a club act" as opposed to "a personal act where one has to give an opinion."
Goal.com
Managing Madrid
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Real Madrid defended the players, stating it respected their right to have different views and that wearing the t-shirt was optional.
Independent
Sky News
Amid the backlash, Mbappé, the French national who secured the Golden Boot at this year's World Cup, told Spanish newspaper AS that "I have complete solidarity with Ceuta," but added that he "also wanted to make a gesture and express my thoughts for all the immigrants who have lost their lives and who are also living in difficult conditions."
Al Jazeera
France24.com
Real Madrid
The Guardian

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

It is completely unacceptable that players who wear the Real Madrid crest and get paid millions of fans' money to allow themselves the luxury of disrespecting Spanish citizens who are suffering an invasion. There needs to be a public apology from these players.

Ultras Sur on X

Narrative B

People talk about respect and values but all that seems to go out of the window when the players express an opinion that's different from their own. They really think they have the right to decide how other people should think with no care in the world for people's freedom of expression.

Israel Gomez on X

Narrative C

It's crazy how everyone makes a fuss about foreign players not wearing a t-shirt but no one said anything at all when the whole Barcelona team did the same thing. Double standards.