Real Madrid has filed a complaint with Spanish state prosecutors asking them to investigate the reported racist chants aimed at forward Vinícius Júnior outside the stadiums of Atletico Madrid and Barcelona before Champions League games this week.
Madrid said on Friday that it asked prosecutors to request footage from security cameras outside the two stadiums ‘in order to identify the perpetrators of the abuse’.
On Thursday, Vinícius retweeted a video (see below) that showed Atletico Madrid fans jumping and chanting ‘Vinícius chimpanzee’ before the team played Inter Milan on Wednesday. The video was initially published by the site Agente Libre Digital.
He wrote, ‘I hope you [UEFA] have already thought about their punishment. It’s a sad reality that it even happens in games where I’m not present.’
There were also reports of hate chants against Vinícius before the Barcelona – Napoli match on Tuesday. Spanish radio Cadena SER published a video in which Barcelona fans chanted ‘Die, Vinícius’, before the team’s 3-1 win.
‘Real Madrid has filed a complaint with the Official State Prosecutor over hate and discrimination offences pertaining to the racist and hateful abuse aimed at our player Vinicius Junior in the areas surrounding the Montjuic Olympic Stadium and the Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid, ahead of the FC Barcelona – Napoli and Atlético de Madrid – Inter Milan Champions League fixtures,’ the club’s statement read.
‘Real Madrid calls on Prosecutors to request the recordings available of both locations from the security forces in order to identify the perpetrators of the abuse.’
‘Real Madrid condemns these violent attacks of racism, discrimination and hate against our player Vinicius Junior, which have sadly been a recurrent and on-going concern for some time. Our club will continue working hard to uphold the values of football and sport as a whole, and will remain steadfast in the fight for a zero-tolerance approach to the types of despicable incidents we have seen on multiple occasions in recent times,’ the statement concluded.
The Spanish league said on Thursday that it would report the incident to the prosecutor’s office for hate crimes.
Vinícius has been regularly targeted by racist slurs during away games in Spain, especially in the last two seasons.
In 2023, Atletico fans hanged an effigy of Vinícius from a bridge in Madrid before a city derby. Prosecutors sought four-year prison sentences for the four hardcore fans accused by authorities of committing the act.
ALSO READ: ‘Isolated episode No.19 and counting’ – Vinícius Jr receives more racist abuse.
Espero que vocês já tenham pensado na punição deles. @ChampionsLeague 👍🏿 @UEFA 👍🏿 é uma triste realidade que passa até nos jogos que eu não estou presente! https://t.co/IDHAkG9H6S
— Vini Jr. (@vinijr) March 14, 2024
Sign up for the FREE Weekly Newsletter from Spain in English.
Please support Spain in English with a donation.
Click here to get your business activity or services listed on our DIRECTORY.
