Racism does not stop in LaLiga. And Vinicius Jr., Real Madrid forward, exploded this Sunday at the Mestalla in the game between Valencia and the white team after receiving racist attacks. It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened to the Brazilian, nor was it the only case that has occurred in the league in recent years. In order to solve the problem, the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Valencia has officially opened an investigation into an alleged hate crime. In addition, the AFE (Spanish Footballers’ Association) and the Movement Against Intolerance, Racism and Xenophobia, chaired by Esteban Ibarra, filed a joint complaint. So did Real Madrid, which reported at noon that it had lodged a complaint with the Attorney General’s Office. In a statement published on its website, the association shows “its strongest rejection and condemnation of the events” that “represent a direct attack on the coexistence model of our social and democratic constitutional state”. They assume that “such attacks also constitute a hate crime”, which is why they have filed a complaint so that “the facts can be clarified and responsibilities clarified”.
Vinicius has been there for hours, days and months. “I’m sorry for the Spaniards who disagree, but today in Brazil Spain is considered a country of racists,” wrote the Carlo Ancelotti team forward on his social media. A complaint collected by the referee in the minutes: “In the 73rd minute, a spectator from the south stand turned to Vinicius and yelled ‘monkey, monkey’, for which the racism protocol was activated and notified the field delegate to transmit the appropriate announcement could.” the public address system. The game was suspended for about ten minutes until the announcement was broadcast over the stadium’s public address system.
So far, a total of nine racism complaints have been registered against Vinicius and only two convictions have been carried out. That last reason means there are already 10 complaints this season. There were no arrests this Sunday, but Valencia have already identified one of the fans who racially insulted Vinicius; It is not impossible that there will be more reports Maria Fabra. While work continues with the police to locate the remaining fans who rebuked the Brazilian, Valencia reported that “the fans who made racist gestures towards Vinícius Jr. will be banned from the stadium for life.” Club strongly condemns this type of behavior, which is not in line with the values of Valencia CF and its fans,” the Valencian club added in a statement.
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On the other hand, the Standing Commission of the State Commission against Violence, Racism, Xenophobia and Intolerance in Sport met this Monday at the Superior Sports Council to express their “absolute rejection” of the events of the previous day in Valencia. “The task of analyzing the available images is to identify the perpetrators of the insults and behavior and to propose appropriate sanctions,” they explain in a statement. And remember that this season the Standing Commission has already proposed sanctions for similar events, amounting to 4,000 euros due to their severity and a one-year ban on sports venues. In addition, on the occasion they called for the “necessary cooperation of clubs in identifying the perpetrators of this heinous behavior” and urged them to work together with their fans to prevent it. He
For Vinicius, this course was generally torture every time he had to play outside the Santiago Bernabéu. Racist chants in El Sadar in March. The same against Betis at Benito Villamarín and then against Barcelona at Camp Nou. In all cases, LaLiga filed complaints with the investigative courts of Pamplona, Seville and Barcelona. Earlier in January, a puppet wearing Vinicius’ shirt appeared on a bridge near Real Madrid’s sports facilities in Valdebebas during the preview of the Madrid Copa del Rey derby. The mannequin was accompanied by a banner reading ‘Madrid hates Real’.
But last season, the Brazilian was also the victim of xenophobic insults. In March 2022, LaLiga filed a complaint with the hate prosecutor of the Balearic Islands about the racist riots against Vinicius. However, the ministry filed a complaint. “The facial expressions and the noises they produce, no doubt typical of profane and despicable attitudes, at the same time bullying and utterly hostile, do not initially appear to have the public criminal dimension in the present case that is postulated,” he concluded.
A few months later, after a Madrid derby, the Madrid Public Prosecutor’s Office also filed another lawsuit following the employer’s complaint. This time it was argued as follows: “There is no specific act which can be attributed to a specific person and once placed in context the insults of a racial nature would not constitute a crime against the dignity of the person concerned within the meaning of Article 510.2a .” ) of the CP”. However, the Ministry of Public Affairs’ argument that most irritated Esteban Ibarra, who had also lodged a complaint, was that the chants were repeated no more than twice, “and that they lasted a few seconds” “Someone who murders spends two hours stabbing? Or two minutes? That’s amazing,” Ibarra told this newspaper.Previously, in 2021, another complaint had been filed in Barcelona.On that occasion, the police were able fail to identify the perpetrators.
However, not all of Vinicius’ attackers have gone unpunished. Valladolid withdrew the subscription of the fans identified by the police who insulted the Brazilian during the game against Madrid. In February 2023, the Mallorca season ticket holder, who yelled “You’re a monkey” at the Brazilian in the Balearic clash against Real Madrid, was fined €4,000 and 12 months without entering a sports venue. “RCD Mallorca always positions itself against any kind of insult or racist language and works with La Liga to identify the person responsible for the racist riots in order to take the appropriate legal action,” Mallorca had explained assisted in the search for the person responsible. Espanyol had done exactly the same after attacking Iñaki Williams in 2020. Barcelona’s hate crimes prosecutor sought two years in prison for the Espanyol fan, who was accused of demeaning and belittling the Athletic forward through racial slurs.
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