Spain’s PM Backs Soccer Player for Waving Palestinian Flag After Athlete Criticized by Israeli Defense Chief
by Shiryn Ghermezian
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez speaks during a press conference after attending a special summit of European Union leaders to discuss transatlantic relations, in Brussels, Belgium, Jan. 23, 2026. Photo: REUTERS/Yves Herman
Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez defended FC Barcelona soccer player Lamine Yamal on Thursday night after the Spanish athlete received backlash for displaying a Palestinian flag during his team’s victory parade celebrating their Spanish league title win.
“Those who consider waving the flag of a State to be ‘inciting hatred’ have either lost their judgment or been blinded by their own ignominy,” Sánchez wrote in a Spanish-language post on X. “Lamine has only expressed the solidarity with Palestine felt by millions of Spaniards. Another reason to be proud of him.”
FC Barcelona won its 29th Spanish league title following a 2-0 victory over Real Madrid. During Monday’s championship parade through the streets of Barcelona, Yamal was filmed waving a Palestinian flag while standing on his team’s open-top bus.
Sánchez’s defense of Lamal seemed to be a direct response to a post on X published Thursday morning by Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz, who accused the 18-year-old soccer player of inciting hatred against Israel by waving the Palestinian flag during the La Liga championship celebrations.
Yamal “chose to incite against Israel and foment hatred while our soldiers are fighting the terrorist organization Hamas, an organization that massacred, raped, burned, and murdered Jewish children, women, and elderly on October 7,” Katz said. “Whoever supports this type of message should ask themselves: Does he consider this humanitarian? Is this moral? As the Minister of Defense of the State of Israel, I will not remain silent in the face of incitement against Israel and against the Jewish people.”
Katz added that he expected FC Barcelona “to distance itself from these statements and make it unequivocally clear that there is no place for incitement or for support of terrorism.”
Hours after Katz’s post, FC Barcelona released a statement distancing itself from Yamal’s actions and said “out of sensitivity” for those offended, his waving of the Palestinian flag would not be shown in repeat broadcasts of the event on the team’s official channels or in the club’s official distribution of photos to media outlets. The team made the remarks in a statement given to its Israeli fan club Barca Mania, who shared it on Facebook. The team said Yamal’s decision to wave the Palestinian flag was “not planned in advance by any factor associated with FC Barcelona but happened spontaneously.”
“At the moment during the celebrations of the Hala Liga championship, there was no intention of making a political statement on behalf of the Barcelona Football Club. Moreover, we disregard messages aimed at a community, state, or nation,” the team said in part. “The Barcelona Football Club remains always committed to the values of respect, bride, diversity, and conversation. We completely understand that the images and videos have caused discomfort or disappointment among members of the Israeli fan community and completely respect your sensitivity and feeling that such issues may provoke.”
FC Barcelona concluded by expressing appreciation for the team’s Israeli fans and their support throughout the years.
The Israeli fan club noted that FC Barcelona “sent us this message and also sent a similar message (in a shorter form) to thousands of Israeli fans who reached out to them by email, with the same points.” According to Barca Mania, FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick also took Yamal aside and told him that soccer players should avoid making political statements.
Yamal will compete in the 2026 FIFA World Cup being in the United States, Canada, and Mexico in June and July.
Spain has been one of Israel’s fiercest critics on the international stage since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel, amid the ensuing wars in Gaza and Iran, whose regime backs the Palestinian terrorist group.
Sánchez has even called for Israel to be barred from international sports events, and last year, he introduced new policies targeting the Jewish state, including an arms embargo and a ban on certain Israeli goods.
Spain is also boycotting the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest by refusing to participate or even air the competition because of Israel’s inclusion in the event.
The Israeli legal advocacy group Shurat HaDin recently filed a complaint with the International Criminal Court asking for an investigation into Sánchez regarding allegations that Spain supplied “equipment and components used by Iran’s regime and its proxy forces for military purposes,” which could implicate him in alleged war crimes.
