Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
What did he say?
Former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has sparked controversy by insulting the French national team ahead of next Tuesday’s 2026 World Cup semi-final clash between La Roja and Le Bleu in Dallas, US.
In an opinion piece published in Spanish newspaper El Depaté, the former Popular Party leader congratulated Spain on qualifying, but deviated from his analytical path to make a controversial statement about the French team, saying it was “at a very high level and that’s without French players”, an apparent reference to the majority of African stars.
Rajoy began his analysis by praising France, noting that they have won the World Cup twice and reached the final last time, in addition to topping the FIFA rankings and winning every match in the current tournament, before making his controversial statement.
The former prime minister highlighted the challenge that awaits Spain’s defense, led by Aymeric Laporte and Pau Cobarsi, the tournament’s best back line in front of star Kylian Mbappe, who leads the goalscoring charts with eight goals, shared with Lionel Messi, in addition to France’s attacking strength represented by Ousmane Dembeles (5 goals).
