Mbappé, Vinícius and Konaté criticised for hiding Ceuta support message
Real Madrid stars draw criticism after Ceuta support message is partly covered
Poinews.com – A pre-match gesture intended to show solidarity with Ceuta has sparked debate after three Real Madrid players wore a commemorative T-shirt in a way that obscured part of its message before Tuesday’s 3-2 La Liga win over Elche.
Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius Júnior and Ibrahima Konaté appeared with the shirt’s sleeves partly rolled up, covering sections of the wording “We are all Ceutans.” Their teammates wore the shirt normally before kick-off.
The message referred to residents of Ceuta, Spain’s autonomous city on the North African coast, where a major migration crisis has created growing pressure on local communities and public spaces.
Tebas condemns the players’ choice
La Liga president Javier Tebas criticised the three players on Wednesday, arguing that partially concealing the wording undermined the purpose of the initiative.
“We saw three players who decided not to put it on. Wearing it halfway is the same as not wearing it at all... it's bad, very bad,”
Tebas said the shirt campaign was approved by La Liga but was not organised by the league itself. The proposal came from a group of business leaders in the Valencian Community. He also insisted that the gesture should not be interpreted as political.
“It is not a political act of any kind.”
The shirts have not been used by every La Liga side. They have generally appeared in selected fixtures, particularly involving clubs from the Valencian Community, rather than across the full competition schedule.
Supporters in Ceuta express disappointment
The reaction in Ceuta was particularly strong. Miguel Ángel Montaño, president of the Real Madrid supporters’ club in the city, said local fans had hoped the high-profile players would help draw attention to the situation facing residents.
“We were really excited to see the players wearing the T-shirts because we need support, but we were left puzzled when we saw that these three players had covered up the message,”
For supporters of the campaign, the clothing was meant as a simple public signal of empathy with a city dealing with the consequences of large-scale arrivals from neighbouring Morocco. The dispute has instead shifted attention toward the players’ decision to wear the shirts differently from the rest of their squad.
Ceuta holds a distinctive place in Spain because it is located in North Africa and shares a land border with Morocco. Its geographic position makes migration a recurring issue, but tensions intensified after tens of thousands of people entered the city on 30 and 31 July.
Many of those who crossed returned to Morocco within a few hours. However, several thousand remained in Ceuta, with migrants camping on beaches and sleeping in streets. Residents have repeatedly demonstrated, saying the Spanish government has left the city to manage a humanitarian emergency beyond its capacity.
Other La Liga clubs take part
Several teams have worn the shirts without incident. Villarreal and Real Betis both displayed them before their match on Monday. Levante also wore them ahead of Sunday’s game against Barcelona, although Barcelona’s players did not take part in the gesture.
The varied participation has highlighted that the initiative is not a compulsory league-wide display. Still, the sight of Mbappé, Vinícius and Konaté with the message partly covered prompted sharper criticism because the players are among the most recognisable figures in Spanish football.
Such public gestures often gain significance beyond the pitch. Supporters of the Ceuta campaign see them as a way to ensure that the challenges facing the city remain visible to audiences across Spain and beyond. Critics of the Real Madrid trio’s presentation viewed the obscured wording as reducing the value of that visibility.
Betis winger responds to criticism
Abde Ezzalzouli, the Real Betis winger of Moroccan origin, also became involved in the wider discussion after facing criticism online for wearing the shirt. In an Instagram post on Tuesday, he rejected the suggestion that his participation had been directed against Moroccans or had any political intention.
“I want to make one thing clear: at no point was the T-shirt with a message aimed at the inhabitants of Ceuta used for a political purpose or out of contempt for my people, the Moroccan people,”
The former Barcelona player said he regarded the gesture as social support for Ceuta’s population rather than a statement about nationality or identity.
“Regardless of their nationality.”
The episode illustrates the difficult balance surrounding public displays of solidarity in football. A shirt designed to support residents facing a humanitarian crisis has become the focus of questions about presentation, symbolism and the meaning attached to a brief pre-match moment.
For Ceuta’s residents, the core concern remains the pressure created by the arrivals in late July and the continuing presence of migrants in the city. The debate around the shirts has put that crisis in the national spotlight, even as it has exposed disagreement over how footballers should participate in such appeals.
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