September 20, (THEWILL) – The racial taunts directed against Real Madrid player, Vinicius Junior, before and during Sunday’s Derbi Madrileno, have been denounced by Atletico Madrid.
A sizable portion of the home fans harassed the Brazil international with racial chants and monkey noises both outside the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium before the game and within the stadium during the game itself.
La Liga has already stated that an investigation is ongoing, and on Tuesday, Atletico Madrid issued a statement condemning the Vinicius-abusing fans: “Atletico de Madrid roundly condemns the inadmissible chants that a minority of fans made outside the stadium before the derby was held.
Racism is one of the biggest scourges in our society and unfortunately the world of football and clubs are not free from its presence. Our club has always been characterised by being an open and inclusive space for fans of different nationalities, cultures, races, and social classes and a few cannot tarnish the image of thousands and thousands of athletes who support their team with passion and with respect for the rival.”
In the period leading up to the derby, Vinicius received criticism from the Spanish media and Atletico Madrid players for his celebratory dancing after scoring a goal, though some remarks, like the one from agent Pedro Bravo telling the winger to “stop playing the monkey”, were deemed to have racist overtones.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
