AI fake videos, viral hoaxes and real racism are colliding at the FIFA World Cup. From a fake AI-generated Ronald Koeman rant and false claims targeting Algerian fans to the racist abuse of Kylian Mbappé and FIFA investigations, misinformation is spreading alongside genuine discrimination. Vedika Bahl fact-checks the biggest World Cup racism claims, exposes the fake ones, and separates viral AI deception from real incidents of racist abuse on and off the pitch.
As the FIFA World Cup heads into the quarter-finals, the tournament has been marred not only by multiple reports of racism and xenophobia, but also by a surge of AI-generated content and false claims exploiting the issue.
Verified incidents of racist abuse have ranged from discriminatory remarks by football pundits to allegations of abuse in the stands and online attacks targeting players. At the same time, fabricated videos and misleading social media posts have falsely accused managers, fans and national teams of racist behaviour.
One viral TikTok video, viewed more than three million times, falsely appeared to show Dutch manager Ronald Koeman launching into a racist tirade against Moroccan players after Morocco‘s victory over the Netherlands. Littered with expletives, the fake rant blasts Moroccans as “camel herding and “cave dwelling rug pilot.” But the clip is made by AI, created by an account notorious for posting football-related AI slop.
Another video – previously covered on Truth or Fake – falsely claimed Algerian supporters chanted “Messi is the enemy of Allah” and threatening Argentina ahead of their World Cup clash. In reality, the audio came from an unrelated political protest against Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and had been repurposed to paint Algerian fans as aggressors.
False reports also circulated after Germany‘s elimination, claiming supporters had launched a petition to ban African and Muslim players from the national team following Jonathan Tah’s missed penalty. The posts falsely attributed the story to Deutsche Welle, which confirmed that no such petition existed.
This spread of fabricated content comes alongside genuine reports of racism during the tournament. Dutch players reported receiving racist abuse online after their defeat, while former Germany captain Bastien Schweinsteiger drew criticism after describing Ivory Coast‘s style as “African football”, which he characterised as “unorthodox, wild and not as tactical”. Serbian pundit Rade Bogdanovic also faced backlash after claiming Black players “lack concentration beyond 60-80 minutes.”
FIFA has also opened an investigation into alleged racist abuse involving American streamer IShowSpeed and an Argentine supporter during the Argentina-Cape Verde match. Separately, Cape Verdean and Egyptian fans have accused Argentina supporters of racist abuse and violence, although FIFA has yet to announce whether further action will be taken.
Perhaps the tournament’s most significant racism controversy has centred on Kylian Mbappé: following Paraguay‘s defeat to France, Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla posted a slew of deeply racist remarks targeting the French captain’s appearance, heritage and background. Mbappé condemned the comments, backed by French President Emmanuel Macron, the United Nations and the French Football Federation. French prosecutors have since opened an investigation into aggravated public insult and incitement to hatred.
According to FIFA’s Social Media Protection Service, more than six million social media posts have been analysed during the tournament, revealing a 13-fold increase in abusive content compared with the 2022 World Cup, with racial abuse accounting for 11% of abusive posts.
