Champions League
Decision made after accusation of racism
02/25/2026 – 4:53 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
The Champions League first leg between Benfica Lisbon and Real Madrid was a scandal. A decision has now been made before the second leg.
UEFA confirmed this afternoon that the Argentine will remain suspended for one game following the accusation of racism in the first leg a week ago. Benfica had appealed against the penalty, but the association has now rejected it.
“The appeal filed by SL Benfica is rejected. Consequently, the decision of the Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body of UEFA of February 23, 2026 is confirmed,” UEFA said in a statement. “Mr Gianluca Prestianni remains temporarily suspended for the next game in the UEFA club competition for which he would otherwise be eligible to play.”
The Benfica professional is said to have racially insulted Real player Vinícius Júnior in the first leg after the Brazilian scored the only goal in his team’s 1-0 away win. The game was briefly interrupted after Vinícius Júnior pointed out the racist remarks to the referee. “The player with number 25 called Vini a monkey five times. This guy no longer deserves to play in the Champions League, but we’ll see what happens,” said Kylian Mbappé, confirming his teammate’s statement. Prestianni, however, denies the allegations.
The Lisbon club defended the offensive player in the person of coach José Mourinho and president Rui Costa and subsequently lodged an objection against the preliminary UEFA ruling. With the association’s rejection, the issue has only been clarified for a short time, as the investigations against Prestianni are still ongoing. Once these are finally completed, he is threatened with a longer compulsory break.
