Los Racist insults contra vinicius are a problem that has reached an international dimension. At the last FIFA congress, Gianni Infantino showed his solidarity with the Real Madrid player. The Brazilian Ministry of Racial Equality repudiated “the racist act, alluding to the hanging of Vinicius by Atlético fans” (in the Cup match), something that the Brazilian Football Confederation also did. Klopp, from Liverpool, raised his voice against the abuse suffered by the player in LaLiga matches. The same does not happen when Vinicius plays with his team or in Champions.
Filed complaints
“In Spain there are enough legislation to address this problem. We have Law 19/2007 against violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sport. We have in the Criminal Code a series of punishable offenses such as crimes applicable above all to soccer ultra groups that practice violence or markedly racist behavior in soccer stadiums. my impression is that the law is not being rigorously applied“, explains to The Newspaper of Spainfrom the Prensa Ibérica group, Esteban Ibarra, president of the Movement against Intolerance.
Last Wednesday, the Ethics Committee of Mallorca, sanctioned with the withdrawal of membership card for three years to the fan who uttered xenophobic insults against Vinicius and also to Samu Chukwueze, from Villarreal. He will have to testify on Tuesday, April 4, in the Investigating Court 3 of Palma as an investigated and the Brazilian winger will be able to do so by videoconference.
This process, applied quickly and severely, is not the norm in Spain. “A deficit that we observe affects the detection of a problem. Many times, the complaints that we have filed, as with the Vinicius case in the Metropolitan, are archived due to lack of identification of their authors. And that there were videos. It’s inexplicable. If hate crimes are not accompanied by police action or the security of the club itself or the identification of those accused, it will be difficult for the Prosecutor’s Office to even apply criminal proceedings, which is what would correspond,” adds Ibarra.
The president of the Movement against Intolerance refers to how the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office of Madrid filed his complaint against the chants uttered in the run-up to the Madrid derby. A group of individuals shouted “you are a monkey, Vinicius”. The Prosecutor’s Office considered them “unpleasant”, but added that “they lasted a few seconds” and that “they would not constitute a crime against the dignity of the person affected”. The complaint against Ibarra came after a week in which all levels, from sports to politics, condemned these acts.
LaLiga reviews
However, the Brazilian was once again the object of the ire of certain sectors, both in Mallorca and in El Clásico, where the cheerleaders at the Camp Nou wished him death. Vinicius does not shut up. “Racists keep going to stadiums and seeing the best club in the world up close and LaLiga continues without doing anything… I will continue with my head held high and celebrating my victories and those of Real Madrid. In the end, it’s my fault, “he denounced. Thebes replied:” Vinicius, he is very unfortunate and unfair. It is not true to publish that LaLiga does nothing against racism, find out more.”
From the employers campaigns are carried out, a manual is delivered to raise awareness among the players, training days are carried out with the Police and the security guards of the stadiums, but the complaints have almost always ended up filed. As happened with the processes of Akapo in Los Cármenes or Nico Williams in Benito Villamarín. His brother, Iñaki, was the protagonist of a historic oral trial for the insults he received at the RCDE Stadium.
LaLiga has sent seven complaints for racist insults against Vinicius. The same does not happen to him when he plays Champions League matches or with his team. Because? “In France e England there is more rigor. They are very serious and here the procedure is not effective. There is the State Commission against Violence, which must assess and make a proposal. Then the Government Delegation has to apply the corresponding penalty. Many times, these complaints and sanction proposals are lost in time. The need to thoroughly apply the law and punish these behaviors has not just been taken seriously,” explains Esteban Ibarra, from the Movement Against Intolerance.
Does Spain have a problem?
The persecution of racism in Europe even reaches the territory of the networks, where all kinds of insults are poured out, especially after a defeat by the national teams. In September 2022, a French court sentenced a fan who tweeted: “That dirty nigger deserves a hundred lashes”, in reference to Mbappé for a missed penalty in the Eurocup. Last week, England sentenced a three-year-old man unable to attend stadiums after sending racist messages to Brentford player Ivan Toney.
Does Spain have a problem with racism in soccer? Abroad it is thought so. “The referees have the possibility and the obligation to stop the matches if there are racist insults“Insisted Infantino at the last FIFA congress, where he explained the protocol to follow. First, the game stops. If the insults are repeated, the referee must tell the players to leave the field and the speaker will issue a warning. The third and last step of the FIFA protocol establishes that “if there are more insults, the match is suspended and three points are awarded to the other team.”The rule is clear, but its application remains theoretical, except that, as it happened On February 25, 2006, someone like Eto’o decides to stand up to the xenophobic abuse that continues in Spanish football.
