Vinicius crisis grows on Valencia “Stop misrepresenting everyone as racists!”
Valencia is still unrepentant.
Valencia announced on the 23rd (KST) through the club’s official channel, “In cooperation with the police authorities, we have identified three fans who committed racism against Vinicius Junior during the last match against Real Madrid. We are cooperating with the authorities to combat racism. In line with the club’s commitment to opposing all forms of discrimination and violence, the fans are banned from the stadium for life,” the statement read.
But the next phrase was problematic. “We condemn racism,” Valencia said in a statement. Racism has no place in our club. We have been leading the fight against racism for many years. In 2019, we imposed a permanent ban on a fan.” “However, it is a complete lie that racist comments were made throughout the stadium. There was a lot of confusion in the public. There was also misinformation. We cannot accept that the whole of Valencia is racist. We ask for respect for our fans.”
This is not the first time Valencia’s attitude has changed. The day before, Valencia also spoke out against being called racist while promising strong action. Spokesman Javier Solis said: “Carlo Ancelotti’s comments, in which he labeled the entire crowd as racists, are completely wrong. The club cannot tolerate this. We deny all such allegations.” “Perhaps it was the result of a linguistic mistake. He must have heard different words and misunderstood.” After the game, Ancelotti said: “La Liga has a problem. It’s not just one person, it’s the whole team. I’ve never seen racism where the whole stadium shouts ‘monkey’,” he said.
Solis added: “To call all Valencia fans racists is ridiculous. We cannot remain silent. If Ancelotti realizes the mistake he made and the seriousness of his words, he should apologize. I too condemn racist insults. Likewise, Ancelotti should apologize when he realizes his mistake,” he added.
While the Spanish Football Federation acknowledged in a statement that there was racism at the game, saying, “We have decided to impose a partial stadium closure on Valencia for five games and a fine of 45,000 euros (approximately $64,000),” the club is still vocal in its condemnation.
The incident took place in the 35th round of the 2022-2023 Spanish Primera Liga between Real Madrid and Valencia at the Mestalla Stadium in Valencia, Spain, on Nov. 22. With Real Madrid trailing 1-0 in the 23rd minute, Vinicius was fouled as he cut in from the left side of the penalty area. As he broke through, another ball was played into the Valencia penalty area, and a defender kicked it out of play, which coincidentally hit the ball exactly where Vinicius was dribbling.
The referee showed the Valencia defender a yellow card for kicking the ball and while the situation was being sorted out, Vinicius started to get into an argument with the crowd behind the goal, pointing fingers at each other. Vinicius complained to the referee that he had been racially abused by pointing at a particular spectator, and his Real Madrid teammate joined in, bringing the game to a halt. After nearly 10 minutes of stoppage time, the game resumed, but this time in second-half stoppage time, players from both teams got into an emotional exchange, during which Vinicius was shown a red card after video assistant referee (VAR) showed him punching an opponent. As he was leaving the field amidst boos from the Valencia fans, Vinicius made a “2” gesture with his fingers before falling to the ground, prompting another scuffle with the angry Valencia players.
After 17 minutes of extra time, the game ended in a 1-0 victory for Valencia.
After the game, the situation was further inflamed. After the game, Vinicius posted on social media, “This is not the first, second, or third time. Racism has become normalized in La Liga,” he wrote on Twitter. ‘The league that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Cristiano Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi now belongs to racists,’ he said, adding, ‘The response of the La Liga secretariat seems to encourage racism. In Brazil today, Spain is perceived as a racist country,” he said, adding, “There is no way to protect me, but I am strong and I will fight against racism.
“Vinicius is a victim,” Ancelotti said. He tried to play in a racist environment and the insults kept coming, and they were really bad. It’s very sad. It’s 2023,” he said, adding, “This is crazy. I want to make it clear that there is no place for any form of discrimination like racism in football and in society, you can’t just say it, you have to show it with actions, we are with the victims of racism, we are against racism and we prohibit any form of discrimination,” he said.
However, a statement from La Liga president Javier Tebas added fuel to the fire. Instead of apologizing, Tepas criticized Vinicius. ‘We tried to explain to you what racism is and what La Liga can do,’ he wrote, sharing Vinicius’ post. ‘You didn’t attend the two dates you asked for yourself. You should educate yourself before criticizing and insulting La Liga. Don’t manipulate yourself and fully understand each other’s abilities and what we have done together,’ he protested.
That’s when Vinicius took action. On his social media accounts, Vinicius released videos of racist comments and behavior directed at him by fans. “Every round away is a series of unpleasant surprises. This season there have been many,” he wrote, captioning the video: “Wishes for my death, hanging dolls, the cries of countless criminals. It’s all recorded,” he captioned the video.
It was horrific. The chants from opposing fans towards Vinicius were shocking. In September last year, Atletico Madrid fans chanted “Vinicius is a monkey,” and three months later, Valladolid fans called him a “stupid nigger. In February of this year, Mallorca fans said, “Go eat a banana,” and in March, Barcelona fans said, “Die Vinicius! Anti-calling from opposing fans towards their ace is a given, but this was way over the top. It was serious.
“This is not soccer. It’s inhumane,” he said, adding, “The evidence of racism is in the video. What’s not enough to explain that these people are criminals. Why aren’t sponsors charging for La Liga, why aren’t televisions broadcasting this barbarism every weekend,” he raged. “Not one of these racists has been named and photographed. Not a single one of them has a sad story to tell or an apology to the public.
Eventually, the international community spoke out. FIFA President Gianni Infantino said: “I express my full solidarity and support for Vinicius. Racism has no place in football or in society. We will support and help any player who experiences racism like this.” In Brazil, the outrage is growing. “It’s not fair that Vinicius is insulted in every stadium he goes to,” said President Lula, calling for action to “prevent fascism and racism from taking over soccer stadiums around the world.” Justice Minister Flavio said he was even considering using “extraterritorial jurisdiction” to apply Brazilian criminal code provisions against the suspects if Spanish authorities failed to take appropriate action in the case.
Brazilians showed their solidarity with Vinicius by turning off the lights of the country’s national symbol, a statue of Jesus with outstretched arms in Rio de Janeiro, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. on April 22, symbolizing the “black and majestic Jesus.
Real Madrid said on the club’s official website: “We strongly condemn what happened to Vinicius Junior. We believe that this racist attack constitutes a hate crime. We have filed a case with the Attorney General’s Office and the Public Prosecutor’s Office so that they can investigate the facts and clarify responsibility.” Valencia, who were initially upset that Ancelotti’s comments were misinterpreted, issued a statement on the club’s official website saying, “Racism is not in line with Valencia values. We are against racism and violence in all its forms. We have identified the fan who used racial slurs against Vinicius. We will take the fastest and strongest action.”
The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) also responded to the incident by disciplining the referees. “Following a big decision by the RFEF, Nacho Iglesias Villanueva will be relieved of his video assistant referee (VAR) duties with immediate effect. In addition, five other VAR referees will not officiate next season,” Marca reported. Vinicius’ ejection was also revoked. The Spanish Refereeing Technical Committee said: “Vinicius acted with the intention of escaping the unruly behavior of the Valencia player. The ejection was unjustified, so we reverse the penalty. Legal action is also being taken. “Spanish police have arrested three spectators for allegedly shouting racist comments at Vinicius,” CNN reported. Separately, Spanish police reportedly arrested four more people in January for allegedly putting a shirt with Vinicius’ name on a doll and hanging it from a bridge.안전놀이터
Of course, there’s still the matter of the Teppas president saying, “Vinicius’ allegations are unjust. Racism is extremely rare in La Liga,” the president of Tepas claimed, but all indications are in Vinicius’ favor. Vinicius has vowed to stay and fight for Real Madrid. He posted a photo of an unlit Brazilian statue of Jesus with the caption, “Black and majestic. Christ the Redeemer was like this. An act of solidarity that moves me,” he wrote, adding, “I want to give more light. I am grateful for all the love and support I have received in the last few months. I will not give up. If I have to suffer, I’m ready to endure it so that future generations don’t have to go through a similar situation.
