In a post on
Published
Reading time: 2 mins
:quality(50)/2024/03/14/075-breton-realmadr240310-nplgo-65f330d2bc035029429627.jpg)
Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr denounced, Thursday March 14, racist chants aimed at him, and sung by Atlético de Madrid supporters, before the Champions League round of 16 second leg against Inter Milan on Wednesday (0 -1, 2-1, 3-2 on penalties). The Brazilian striker demanded sanctions from UEFA.
“I hope you have already thought about their punishment”, launched the Brazilian on X, mentioning the official accounts of the Champions League and UEFA. In his message, he relays a video where we hear Atlético supporters singing “alé, alé, alé, Vinicius chimpanzee” in front of the Metropolitano stadium.
“It’s a sad reality that happens even during matches where I am not present”added in the same message Vinicius, victim of racist acts or insults on numerous occasions since his arrival in Madrid in 2018.
La Liga announces filing complaint
The Spanish Football League told AFP that it would file a complaint over these “lamentable racist chants”even if the facts occurred during a European match and not a championship, and outside the stadium. “La Liga is very committed to making football a hate-free space”indicates the instance, even if it has been singled out on several occasions by Vinicius Jr himself. “They never did anything”he lamented in October in an interview with France Football.
Frequently targeted for his skin color, the 23-year-old Brazilian has despite himself become a leader in the fight against discrimination in Spanish football. He had already been attacked several times since the start of the season in or around a stadium, notably in Seville and Barcelona, after a violent episode in Valencia in 2023 for which three people, whom the club has banned for life, are currently the subject of a judicial investigation.
In June, four ultra supporters of Atlético, accused of having hung a mannequin bearing the likeness of Vinicius from a bridge in the Spanish capital at the end of January, were also banned from stadiums for two years.