In this article, we will list the 12 most hated countries in Europe. However, before proceeding to our list, we will discuss why some countries dislike the United States and the hate against the European Union within Europe.
Last year, we listed the top 30 most hated countries in the world, and the United States was in the runner-up position, falling short only to China. According to Thomas Swan, the country’s military adventures and influence over other nations’ political systems serve as a reason for so much hatred for the country. However, this is not the only reason why the country often gets a bad reputation.
Although the United States is a top migrant destination, many people around the world believe that discrimination is common in the country. In 2021, the Pew Research Center published findings from nationally representative surveys of 17 advanced economies to know what people like and dislike about American society and politics. Those who identify themselves on the left side of the ideological spectrum see discrimination as one of the major issues within the US. For example, 81% of Canadians on the left were especially likely to believe that discrimination in the country is a serious problem.
It is worth noting that this view is expressed by leftists even though American companies like Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:APPL) are actively fighting against discrimination. The company recently committed $100 million to its Racial Justice Initiative and announced the launch of several projects as part of this. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:APPL) also announced the launch of the Propel Center, a global innovation and learning hub for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).
Other major American tech companies, such as Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), are also committed to promoting racial equity. Its Racial Equity Initiative is committed to addressing racial injustice and inequity for Black and African communities in the United States. Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) focuses on three pillars to achieve this. The first is strengthening communities in the country by using technology and partnerships to improve the living situation of Blacks and African Americans. The second pillar is engaging its ecosystem by using its relationship with suppliers and partners to foster societal change. The third pillar, according to Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT), is increasing the representation and strengthening inclusion of African American and Black communities.
Contrary to the common belief, U.S. democracy does not serve as an ideal. One of the findings of the survey by Pew Research Center was that 57% of the respondents believe that the democratic system in the country used to be a good example but has not been in recent years. This is in addition to the 23% who believe that the country’s democracy has never been a good example. This sentiment is shared by an overwhelming majority of the country as well as 72% of Americans say that their democracy used to be a good example but it is not the case anymore.
Before we discuss some of the most hated countries in Europe, let us look at the hate against the European Union that exists within European countries. Another survey by the Pew Research Center in 2019 found that significant proportions of the population in some European countries have an unfavorable opinion about the EU. Surprisingly. France leads such countries, with 47% of its population expressing an unfavorable opinion about the EU. France is followed by Russia, where 44% of the people express unfavorable opinions about the EU. In addition, across the 14 EU member states a median of 31% express unfavorable views about the organization.
With that backdrop, let’s look at the 12 most hated countries in Europe.
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Methodology
To curate our list of the 12 most hated countries in Europe, we used a consensus method and used six (1,2,3,4,5,6) sources. All of these sources list the most hated countries in the world. Every time a European country appeared on our sources, we noted it down along with its ranking on the source. Then, we counted the number of times each country appeared on the list and called it frequency. The higher the frequency, the higher the country ranks on our list. For tie-breaking, we summed the number of ranks and gave preference to the country with the lower sum of ranks. For example, if country A and B, both have a frequency of 3 but country B has a lower sum of rank, it ranks higher on our list. It is essential to note that we also included countries that partly lie in Europe. These countries include Russia and Turkey.
12 – Iceland
Frequency – 1
It might be surprising to see Iceland in the list of most hated countries in Europe, but people dislike the country for plenty of reasons. Tourists hate Iceland because of the limited product variety at local stores, as it is a small and isolated country. They also dislike the country because of its climate, as it is on the edge of the Arctic with volatile weather. One of the major reasons why tourists hate Iceland is the fact that liquor in the country is extremely expensive, as a state-owned company is the sole retail vendor of alcohol in the country.
11 – Finland
Frequency – 1
Finland is 11th on our list of the 12 most hated countries in Europe. Despite being regarded as one of the happiest countries in the world, it is also the place with one of the highest intoxication rates, which is why it is often hated in the world. In fact, it ranks 17 on our list of the countries with the highest rates of alcoholism, as 9.1% of its population has alcohol use disorder.
Some of the cultural norms in Finland might also make some extroverts hate the country. Finnish are considered to be reserved, which many people might find rude.
10 – Switzerland
Frequency – 1
While most people love Switzerland for its breathtaking views and quality of life, the country has a bad reputation regarding xenophobia and racism. According to a report presented to the U.N Human Rights Council in 2022, Switzerland has a serious systematic problem with racism against people of African descent. Racist incidents are increasing in the country as they rose by almost 25% in the year 2023. During this year, 876 such cases were recorded. In addition, a significant number of these cases occurred within the educational sector, including schools. One in six people in Switzerland suffer from racial discrimination.
9 – Sweden
Frequency – 1
Sweden is part of our list of the most hated countries in Europe. One of the reasons why people dislike the country is because of the stereotype that Swedes see casual chattiness as needless. Tourists use small talk and casual chat to get to know the people, but they find it increasingly difficult in Sweden. Some people also dislike traveling to Sweden because its northernmost part has a sub-Artic climate with long, cold, and snowy winters.
8 – Greece
Frequency – 1
There are several reasons why Greece is one of the most hated countries in Europe. The country is often perceived as having a corrupt government. In fact, according to a survey, it is considered to be the most corrupt country among the European Union nations.
The country is also the worst in Europe for press freedom. According to the World Press Freedom Index 2023 by Reporters Without Borders, it ranks 107th, the lowest among European Union Countries, leaving behind countries such as Niger and Haiti, in terms of press freedom. The country also has had a history of xenophobic violence, especially during the 2013 financial crisis.
7 – Italy
Frequency – 1
Italy ranks seventh on our list of the 12 most hated countries in Europe. People with Italian ancestry have been discriminated against so much that the phenomenon has a label: anti-Italianism.
However, the country Italy has a bad reputation because of its nationalist and anti-immigrant attitude. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, Italy has the most anti-immigrant and anti-religious minority attitudes among the participating Western European countries. In addition, a study published in 2017 found deep-rooted intolerance for migrants across Italy. According to the survey, 55 out of 100 respondents believed that some form of racism could be justified.
6 – Serbia
Frequency – 1
Serbia is one of the most hated countries in Europe. Hate speech in the country has been growing over the last few years, and the country saw incidents of two mass shootings in two days, leaving seventeen people dead. In addition, Serbians are also perceived to have strong nationalist feelings. Several war criminals such as Ratko Mladic are also glorified by the right-wing nationalists in the country. He is a Bosnian Serb former military officer who was convicted for crimes against humanity, during the siege of Sarajevo, by the International Criminals Tribunal. A large mural of Mladic in uniform was painted on a building in Belgrade following his conviction.
5 – Germany
Frequency – 2
Germany is among the top 5 most hated countries in Europe. During the era of World Wars, it was hated because of the prevalent Nazi and Anti-semantic ideologies and the genocide of its jews.
While modern-day Germany is nothing like its Nazi past, traces of racism still remain a part of the country and makes people hate it. In fact, more than half of black people in Germany report experiencing racism. In addition, nearly 20% of the black people in the country say that they have been subjected to threats of harassment.
4 – France
Frequency – 2
There are many stereotypes attached to French culture, making it one of the most hated countries in Europe. One of these stereotypes is that French people are arrogant and rude. However, some people dislike the country because of its role in colonialism and its vocal stance on certain political issues.
Discrimination based on religion is also an issue in the country, particularly for its Muslim minority. In a 2019 study, 42% of French Muslims reported feeling discriminated against. There is also evident stereotyping of Muslims in the public discourse in the country.
3 – Turkey
Frequency – 3
Turkey is among the top 3 most hated countries in Europe. Turkish people are often perceived to have strong nationalist feelings. Historically, the country has discriminated against and even carried out genocide against its Armenian minority during the Ottoman rule. The country is also one of the worst for press freedom. It ranks 165 out of 180 in the World Press Freedom Index. Press freedom in the country has become worse over the last few years, as it ranked 154 in the 2020 edition of the World Press Freedom Index. The country also gets a bad reputation for imprisoning its journalists as 25 of them were imprisoned in six months in 2022.
2 – United Kingdom
Frequency – 3
The United Kingdom is our runner-up for the most hated countries in Europe. One of the primary reasons for the hate the country gets is its colonial past and the systemic exploitation of countries such as India, which are still grappling with the effects of colonialism.
However modern-day Britain gets hate for the perceived nature of its people. The country ranks 11th on our most hated countries in the world article where we looked at how there is a perception that Britons are rude.