Trevor Noah, the host of Comedy Central’s The Daily Show, is facing backlash for calling the French soccer team, who are also the World Cup champs, a team of Africans because a majority of the players are Black.
“Africa won the World Cup,” Noah said in Monday’s segment in regards to France’s 4-2 triumph against Croatia on Sunday on Moscow .“I get it, they have to say it’s the French team,” he said. “But look at those guys. You don’t get that tan by hanging out in the south of France, my friends.
TONIGHT: Congratulations to Africa on winning the 2018 Men’s World Cup! pic.twitter.com/ly1wxU1VzT
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) July 17, 2018
“Basically if you don’t understand, France is Africans’ backup team. Once Senegal and Nigeria got knocked out, that’s who we root for.”
The comedian’s remarks came one day before previous U.S. President Barack Obama referenced the French group for instance of how individuals should look past race and hold onto everybody as a kindred national.
“Just ask the French football team that just won the World Cup. … Not all of those folks looked like Gauls to me. But they’re French! They’re French,” Obama said in Johannesburg during a speech honoring late South African leader Nelson Mandela.
