This article investigates how Turkey’s bid for membership in the European Eunion is portrayed in the Spanish newspaper El País from 1999 to 2010. It examines support for Turkey’s bid for membership, opposition to this bid, and the extent to which the domestic debate on the issue is covered by the newspaper. The study, which is done within the frameowork of Critical Discourse Analysis, examines the selection of topics and speakers, and identifies the referential strategies and metaphors used to refer to Turkey, Turkish leaders and Turkey’s candidature. Metaphors were searched for by means of keywords and synonyms. The study shows that little domestic debate has evolved on this specific issue and that Turkey, despite official Spanish support, is still depicted as Europe’s cultural ‘Other’ with repeated reference to the place of religion in Turkish society.