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Brazil’s National Human Rights Council has called on the United Nations (UN) and FIFA to take stronger action against racism at the 2026 World Cup, citing a surge in racist abuse directed at players during the tournament.
In a statement released on Friday, the council said the competition had been marked by what it described as a transnational pattern of structural racism, racial discrimination and hate speech, pointing to incidents involving French forward Kylian Mbappé and other players.
The appeal comes after racist abuse was reported in stadiums, on social media and from public figures throughout the tournament, which concludes on Sunday with the final between Spain and Argentina.
Among the incidents cited were derogatory remarks about Mbappé by a Paraguayan senator, comments by former Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy questioning the nationality of French players, and online racist abuse targeting Black members of the Netherlands squad after their penalty shootout defeat to Morocco.
The council urged FIFA and the United Nations to ensure that tournament co-hosts the United States, Mexico and Canada thoroughly investigate reported incidents of racism and take appropriate action.
Council President Ivana Leal cited FIFA data showing that more than 89,000 of over six million monitored social media posts during the tournament contained abusive content, including thousands of racist messages. She noted that the figure was more than 13 times higher than that recorded during the 2022 World Cup.
Leal said the World Cup should serve as a celebration of cultures and peoples, stressing that the data highlighted racism as an ongoing global challenge.
