Real Madrid have turned to Spanish prosecutors to investigate a "hate crime" following racist insults against Brazilian international striker Vinicius Junior, and the president of the Spanish federation admitted on Monday that his country has a "problem with racism".
Vinicius Jr. was abused during his team's defeat at Valencia on Sunday in the 35th stage of LaLiga, generating a backlash from around the world.
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A post shared by Real Madrid C.F. (@realmadrid)
"Real Madrid believes that such attacks also constitute a hate crime, and has therefore submitted the appropriate report to the Public Prosecutor's Office, specifically to the Prosecutor's Office on hate crimes and discrimination, in order to investigate the facts and prosecute those responsible," the team wrote in a statement on its official website on Monday.
Official statement.#ريال_مدريد
— Real Madrid (@realmadridarab) May 22, 2023
"Article 124 of the Spanish Constitution defines the functions of the Attorney General's Office to strengthen the work of justice in defending legality, the rights of citizens and the public interest."
For his part, the president of the federation, Luis Rubiales, admitted - at a press conference at the headquarters of the federation near Madrid - "First of all, it must be recognized that we have a problem of behavior, racist education in our country."
"As long as there is one fan or a group of fans who insult someone because of their sexual orientation and skin colour, we will face a serious problem that tarnishes the image of an entire team, all fans and a country as a whole."
⏯️ Details of what happened with Vinicius in the Valencia match
▪️ Abdulaziz Al-Sulaiti: A full season and Vinicius is subjected to racism.
▪️ Haitham Farouk: Vinicius injustice today #La Liga | #فالنسيا_ريال_مدريد #LaLigaSantander pic.twitter.com/rLzqFSQA3l
— beIN SPORTS (@beINSPORTS) May 22, 2023
During the match against Valencia, Vinicius was subjected to insults of all kinds, especially racism, by a large crowd at the Mestalla Stadium, at the end of which the player was sent off for dealing a blow to Ugo Duro during a dispute between them.
The Movement Against Intolerance and the Spanish Footballers' Association also announced – in a press release – that they had filed a complaint.
"Both organisations are totally opposed to the unacceptable behaviour of some fans and believe that the time has come to act – and in a definitive manner – to confront such dangerous realities that are unfortunately not individual," the statement said.
After the royal team went to court, Valencia's prosecutors on Monday opened a "hate crime" investigation into racist insults against Vinicius Jr.
Valencia's public prosecutor has launched an investigation into a "hate crime", a judicial source told AFP.
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A post shared by Vinicius Jr. ⚡️🇧🇷 (@vinijr)
After the game, Vinnie wrote on his Instagram account: "This is not football, racism is normal in LaLiga, it was not the first, the second or the third time. I'm really sad. The tournament that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano (Ronaldo) and Messi, now belongs to the racists."
"A beautiful country that welcomed me and loved it, but agreed to export the image of a racist state to the world. I am sorry for the Spaniards who do not agree with this opinion, but today in Brazil Spain is a racist country."
Rubiales used the incident to respond to La Liga president Javier Tebas, who did not accept the Brazilian's accusations, exchanging attacks on social media.
"More assertive"
After Vinicius Tebas demanded "actions and sanctions", the Spaniard said in a new response, "Neither Spain nor La Liga is racist, it is unfair to say that", recalling that "9 racist insults have been reported this season (8 of which were against Vini) and we have always identified the perpetrators and filed a complaint with the concerned authorities, no matter how few of them, we have not shown compassion for anyone."
Rubiales responded to Tebas, knowing that the relationship between the federation and the league is not good, inviting the president of the Brazilian Confederation to come to Spain; "I want to ask the president of the Brazilian Confederation to come or to go so that he can see what the federation is doing to fight this scourge, I also ask you not to pay attention to the behavior of the president of La Liga as he enters into a dispute with a player who has been harshly attacked."
1. Nem Espanha, nem @LaLiga são racistas. É muito injusto dizer isto.
2. Como @LaLiga denunciamos e combatemos o racismo com toda rigidez dentro das nossas competências
3. Esta temporada foram feitas 9 casos de insultos racistas (8 delas por insultos contra @vinijr). Sempre... https://t.co/KFXHOJv6cb
— Javier Tebas Medrano (@Tebasjavier) May 22, 2023
For its part, the Spanish government denounced – through the Minister of Consumer Affairs Alberto Garzón – what happened, saying – in an interview with Radio Capli – that "the institutions that guarantee the proper functioning of football (...) You have to be more assertive with this kind of issue."
"When you have a part of the fans shouting racist insults at a player, obviously what you have to do is respond in a categorical way."
After denouncing what happened on Sunday, Valencia issued a statement on Monday declaring a "lifetime ban on the stadium for fans" involved after opening investigations with the police, adding that the latter "identified a fan who made racist gestures" against Vinicius.
COMUNICADO OFICIAL | El Valencia CF expulsará del estadio de por vida a los aficionados que profirieron gestos racistas a Vinícius Jr.
El Club condena enérgicamente este tipo de comportamientos, que no se corresponden con los valores del Valencia CF y su afición.
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf) May 22, 2023
Traditional rivals Barcelona coach Xavi said: "There is no slogan, no opponents or clubs, racism must be eradicated once and for all. There is no shield here, it's about human beings and we condemn any racist act."