Two new racist episodes in Spain once morest the footballer Vinicius Júnior. What is striking on this occasion is that the insulting chants once morest the Brazilian for being black were in the context of two matches in which the Madrid player did not even play, Atlético-Inter and Barcelona-Naples, the two Champions League matches this week. . Both LaLiga and Real Madrid have filed complaints with the hate crime prosecutor’s office. The first, due to what happened in the vicinity of the Metropolitan stadium, in Madrid; the white club for that and for events that occurred around Montjuïc, in Barcelona. Vinicius, in a tweet, President Lula in another and the Brazilian Government, in a formal note, this Thursday demanded that the Champions League, UEFA and the Spanish authorities punish those responsible. The Spanish and Brazilian teams will play a friendly, precisely once morest racism and in support of the forward, on the 26th at the Bernabéu, their first match in more than a decade. The national coach, Luis de la Fuente, gave the squad list this Friday.
Vinicius himself tweeted a video in which a crowd, some wearing red and white t-shirts, can be seen in the vicinity of the Metropolitan stadium chanting “Aleeeee, ale, ale, aleeeee, Vinicius chimpanzee” and laughing. “I hope you have thought regarding the punishment for them,” the footballer says in this message to both the organizers of the Champions League and UEFA.
“Real Madrid condemns these violent attacks of racism, discrimination and hatred that have been occurring, unfortunately repeatedly, once morest our player Vinicius Júnior,” states the note released this Friday in which the club announces the complaint and reiterates that “it is will remain firm in its fight for zero tolerance in the face of episodes as repugnant as those that continue to occur.” The two clubs mentioned remain silent regarding events that occurred outside their stadiums.
The Real Madrid coach, Carlo Ancelotti, referred in a press conference to the latest racist episodes in Barcelona and Madrid: “The problem is there. As I said, Valencia performed very well following this episode. Now those who have the possibility to do so have to act. It is necessary to act to avoid these types of problems, and very very ugly things that affect this society. “Criminals don’t have to be on the streets.”
President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a great soccer fan, expressed in X his solidarity with the soccer player and his deep disgust at what he described as “racist barbarism.” The president, who often jokes regarding legendary teams, selections or matches in his appearances with other leaders or politicians, added: “It is incredible that in the second decade of the 21st century there are still behaviors of this type,” in reference to racist chants. of Atlético fans.
To give even greater significance to the unrest in the player’s homeland, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry issued a note in which it announced that “the Brazilian Government will reiterate its concern to the Spanish Government and the sports authorities over the repeated racist attacks” and “will demand measures.” to UEFA.” In clear and direct language, the Foreign Ministry warns the competent authorities that “as long as there are no criminal and sporting sanctions to match, racists will continue to act and no campaign once morest racism will give effective results.” In May of last year, Lula mobilized a good part of his ministers in an offensive of protests once morest Spanish passivity in the face of racist attacks on the player.
It is unbelievable that in the second decade of the 21st century behavior of this type still exists. All our solidarity with Vini Jr. He deserves all the respect and admiration for his talent and competence, not these manifestations of racist barbarism. https://t.co/256GjgAYkz
— Lula (@LulaOficial) March 14, 2024
The Spain-Brazil friendly on the 26th at the Madrid stadium will be the first between both teams since 2013, when they played in the final of the Confederations Cup with a victory for the Canarinha. In the previous nine matches, Brazil won five times; the red in two and there were two ties.
Over the last year Vinicius has been the victim of a campaign of racism with multiple attacks inside and outside Spanish stadiums. In December, the Prosecutor’s Office requested four years in prison for the four ultras of the Atlético Front who hung an inflatable doll with a Vinicius shirt on a bridge in the capital. And at the beginning of the month, the Brazilian forward vindicated himself when he returned to Mestalla, Valencia’s stadium, where a year ago he was the victim of racist insults and stopped the match. In a match marked by a large police deployment, the Madrid player scored the two goals of the tie and greeted the stands with his fist raised, in the style black power. The gesture triumphed in the press in his country.
Brazil is not free of racism. What’s more, it is systemic—Afro-Brazilians live less than whites, are poorer, get sicker, are more likely to die violently or go to prison…—but it is usually less explicit. It is outrageous here that in a European country and in a public place, someone who is also an unquestionably successful professional is openly insulted because of the color of his skin.
For decades, Brazilian authorities promoted the idea, which statistics refute, that this was a society without racism, indifferent to different skin tones. The note from the Brazilian Foreign Ministry recalls that its football “has established itself as an instrument for the inclusion and advancement of sectors [sociales] historically less favored in our society.”
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