Spain‘s Prime Minister Calls for Israel’s Exclusion from Sporting Events Following Vuelta Protests
Madrid, โฃSpain – Spanishโข Prime minister Pedro Sรกnchez has voiced support for banning Israel from international sporting events, following โdisruptions to the Vuelta a espaรฑa cycling race caused by protests against Israel’s actions in Gaza. Demonstrators blocked the road during theโ twenty-first stage of the race, from Alalpardo to Madrid, on Sunday, September 14, 2025, in an attempt to halt the competition.
Theโข protests,which reportedly drew an estimated 100,000 people to the streets according to โฃthe central government’s representative for the โขMadrid region,were linked to โcalls for a ceasefire in Gaza and an end to armsโ sales to Israel. Sรกnchez and his government have publicly expressed admiration forโ the demonstrators, a stance that has drawn โคsharpโ criticismโ from theโข Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), โคthe โsport’s โgoverning body.
The UCI โreleased a statement expressing “total โdisapproval of and deep concern about theโ eventsโ that marked” the Vuelta, and “strongly condemns the โexploitation of sport for political purposes in general, and especially comingโ fromโค a โขgovernment.” The โassociation further stated that theโ Spanish Prime Minister’s support forโ actions hindering the race is “contradictory to the Olympic values of unity, mutual โคrespect,โค and โpeace,” and questioned Spain’sโ ability to host future international sporting events safely and โin accordance with the Olympic Charter.
Guillรฉn, a representative involved with the Vuelta, indicated the protests will likely have repercussions for future sporting events involving Israeli participants, stating, “After this vuelta, the international entitiesโฃ will needโข to make decisions and cycling will need โฃto haveโค some internal discussions toโ find solutions.” โ
The controversy โraises concerns about the potential impact on upcoming events, including the Tour de France, which is scheduled to begin with โaโข stage in โขBarcelona next year.Guillรฉn expressed hope that theโ situation would be resolved before then, stating, “Hopefully, everything will be solved by then. I don’t want to speculate with any possibilities. I’m sure Barcelona will have a great Tour de France.”
