Spanish police investigating racist chants

Police in Spain are investigating "Islamophobic and xenophobic" chants heard during the first half of Spain's 0-0 draw with Egypt in Barcelona on Tuesday.

At half-time a message warning fans against xenophobic remarks and singing was displayed on the screen at the RCDE Stadium, with the stadium announcer reading out a similar request.

The message was repeated early in the second half, leading to whistles from some sections of the crowd.

"We are investigating yesterday's Islamophobic and xenophobic chants at RCDE Stadium during the Spain-Egypt friendly match," Catalonia's regional police force wrote on X.

The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has also condemned the anti-Muslim chants.

"The RFEF stands against racism in football and condemns any act of violence inside stadiums," they posted on social media.

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente called the chants "intolerable" and said "violent people use football to carve out a space for themselves."

"They must be removed from society, identified, and kept as far away as possible," De la Fuente added.

Tuesday's game was due to be played in Qatar but was moved to the home of La Liga side Espanyol because of the war in the Middle East.

De la Fuente made 10 changes from Friday's 3-0 friendly win over Serbia, with Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal the only player to keep his place, while Egypt were without injured Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah.

The result also led to Spain, one of the co-hosts of the next World Cup in 2030, losing their top place in the world rankings.