The match between FC Valencia and Real Madrid got out of hand because of racist abuse. Real Brazil striker Vinicius Jr says: “Racism is normal in La Liga.”
Vinicius Junior stands in front of the spectators at the Estadio Mestalla with wide eyes. Again and again he points to a certain fan. A cluster of players forms around him. Sometimes the players get into heated arguments with the Valencia fans. The German national player Antonio Rüdiger tries to keep order and even has to hold his teammate Vinicius in the meantime. The heated game gets out of control at this point at the latest. It resulted in 17 minutes of stoppage time and a 1-0 win for Valencia – but in the end that was just a side issue.
Vinicius Junior, often just called “Vini”, had apparently been the victim of racist insults in the run-up to the scene described. This has happened several times in the past: “It was not the first, nor the second, nor the third time. Racism is normal in La Liga. The competition thinks it’s normal, the federation thinks so too and the opponents encourage it.”, wrote the striker on Twitter. He referred to Spain as “beautiful nation I love”but he no longer has a defense for what is happening week after week.
Liga wants to investigate incidents – Real switches Attorney General’s Office a
The president of the Spanish league, Javier Tebas, also reacted to Vinicius’ statements on Twitter: Before Vinicius criticizes and slanders, he must inform himself properly, according to Tebas. He criticized the 22-year-old for not appearing at any appointment with the league to talk about the racism incidents. Then Vinicius ruled again, who sharply attacked the president and called for action.
The Spanish league wants to investigate the incident: “If a hate crime is identified, La Liga will take appropriate legal action”, according to a statement. Apparently, this is not enough for Real Madrid: in a club mediation, the club sharply condemned the incidents and announced legal action. A complaint of hate crimes and discrimination was filed with the public prosecutor’s office.
Ancelotti: “The league has a problem”
Real coach Carlo Ancelotti made a clear statement after the game: “It’s unacceptable. The Spanish league has a problem with racism – a very serious problem.” It must stop talking and act instead, he wrote in an Instagram post. From his point of view, it would have been necessary to stop the game: “The whole stadium went crazy.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino also brought a game abandonment into play, who expressed his solidarity with Vinicius Junior. FIFA and UEFA have a three-step plan for racism incidents that they recommend for all levels of football. In the first step, the game is interrupted and the audience is asked to stop the behavior immediately with a stadium announcement. In the next step, the referee can interrupt the game for a longer period of time and send the teams to the cabins. If the insults and discrimination persist, the game can be abandoned.
Game continues – Vinicius is sent off
There was no game abandonment yesterday. Although the game was temporarily interrupted after the tumult and the stadium announcer asked the fans to refrain from the insults, there was no peace until the final whistle. The visibly overwhelmed referee Ricardo de Burgos showed Vinicius Junior the red card in the seventh minute of added time after an assault. In another pack formation, the Brazilian pushed an opponent away with his hand in his face.
But that’s just a side note, along with Real’s defeat, which also meant losing second place to local rivals Atlético. Even the Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula, commented on the incidents on the sidelines of the G7 summit. “It is not possible that, almost in the middle of the 21st century, racial prejudice is gaining strength in several football stadiums in Europe”said Lula. Vinicius also received encouragement and solidarity from teammate Toni Kroos on Twitter and Brazilian ex-world footballer Ronaldo, who
“Inaction on the part of the association and those responsible” sees.
These statements also increase the pressure on those responsible for the league. And the fact that Real Madrid are now taking legal action themselves makes the situation even worse. Against Vinicius alone, it was the eighth documented incident of xenophobia this season. Those responsible for the league – above all President Tebas – must now show that they actually take the racism problem seriously.