Barcelona star Lamine Yamal waved a Palestinian flag during an open top bus parade as the team celebrated winning the Spanish title.
The 18-year-old winger, who is already widely regarded as one of the best soccer players in the world, held the flag as the team bus drove through the streets of Barcelona on Monday. He also posted pictures of him holding it on his Instagram account.
On Tuesday, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick was questioned about Yamal’s decision to wave the flag.
“This I don´t normally like,” Flick told a news conference. “I spoke with him. I said if he wants this, it is his decision. He is old enough. He´s 18 years old.”
There has been a global backlash against Israel over the humanitarian toll of the war in Gaza, which has spread to sport and culture. Protests have been seen in sports such as soccer, cycling and basketball.
By holding the flag, Lamal appeared to indicate his support for Palestinians as an estimated nearly 750,000 people took to the streets to celebrate Barcelona’s La Liga title parade.
Flick said celebrations with fans after back-to-back titles was his priority.
“We are playing football and you can see what the people expect from us,” he said. “We are playing football to make the people happy. This is for me the first thing we have to do.”
Spain international Yamal is one of the leading contenders to take over from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as soccer’s biggest star. He is expected to be one of the stars at the World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico held in June and July.