2026 World Cup, “France-Africa at Home”: Former Striker Sparks Controversy and Then Clarifies
“France-Africa at home. Pure bliss.” Alessandro Melli sparks a row with a post celebrating the elimination of Didier Deschamps’ team, which was defeated 2-0 by Spain in Dallas. There were many comments—and a few, though not many to be honest, critical ones—in response to the post by the former Parma striker, who later sought to clarify what he had written. “So I’ll try to explain this to those who, unfortunately, are prejudiced and always see everything as rotten—fortunately, there are few of them. This isn’t a racist post, and I’ll explain why. At this World Cup, I’m rooting for Argentina—I’ve been rooting for Argentina since the dawn of time—but if England were to win it, I’d be overjoyed, and I don’t think there’s a lack of Black players on the English team; quite the contrary… So maybe a little healthy humor and lightheartedness would help us live better. Hugs.”
This isn’t the first time Melli has found himself at the center of controversy over his social media posts about soccer. The former striker, born in 1969, had already made headlines last April when, going against the tide of general enthusiasm, he slammed the Champions League semifinal between PSG and Bayern Munich: “Between VAR and a style of play that no longer involves defense, man-marking, or a midfield screen, this kind of soccer literally pisses me off.” In short, he’s someone who isn’t one to hold back.
Melli’s post comes against the backdrop of a semifinal that sparked debate far beyond the soccer field. The lead-up to France vs. Spain had been marked by a political-diplomatic incident sparked by former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who had called France “a team without French players” in reference to the African origins of many players on Les Bleus. The reactions were immediate: French government spokesperson Maud Bregeon called the remarks “clearly racist,” while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez distanced himself with a clear message on X: “Spain belongs to those who love it and work for it, not to those who dishonor it with xenophobic statements.”
On the field, France paid dearly for a lapse by Lucas Digne, who, in the 22nd minute of the first half, brought down Lamine Yamal in the box, conceding a penalty to Spain, which Mikel Oyarzabal then converted. It was a fatal mistake for a national team that had reached the semifinals as the only one in the tournament to have won all its matches in regulation time, defeating Senegal, Iraq, and Norway in the group stage, and then eliminating Sweden, Paraguay, and Morocco in the knockout rounds. Pedro Porro’s second goal in the 58th minute then sealed the deal, with Kylian Mbappé particularly subdued throughout the match.
