Rajoy doubles down after Spain's victory over France without apologizing

Mariano Rajoy, former Spanish Prime Minister (2011–2018), escalated the racist controversy surrounding the France–Spain semi-final on July 14 by publishing a second article on El Debate without offering any apology.

Two days before the match kicked off, the Popular Party member had already signed an op-ed describing the French team as a squad “with no French players.” Those remarks sparked strong reactions on both sides of the Pyrenees.

Following Spain’s 2-0 victory, Rajoy chose to double down rather than explain himself. In a new piece published on the same outlet, the 71-year-old expressed satisfaction with the “attention” his writings had generated. “I thank the authorities for the attention they paid me during this World Cup,” he wrote in his introduction. “It is regrettable that so much effort spent praising my merits has distracted them from other matters.”

No apology was issued despite the scale of the controversy, which sits within a broader context: the 2026 World Cup has already been marked by several racist incidents since the tournament began.