May 23, (THEWILL) – Brazil has strongly condemned the recurring “racist attacks” suffered by Brazilian soccer star, Vinicius Junior, in Spain and is urging the Spanish Government and sports authorities to take decisive action against those involved, according to a statement from the country’s Foreign ministry.
The Ministry expressed its deep concern following the latest incident on Sunday, where racist insults were reportedly hurled at Vinicius, who is a black forward for Real Madrid and has been one of the team’s top scorers this season. Brazil’s Foreign Ministry called in Spain’s ambassador on Monday, to provide an explanation and shed light on the situation.
Highlighting the seriousness of the matter and the occurrence of yet another unacceptable episode, the Brazilian Government expressed its disappointment that effective measures have not been implemented to prevent the repetition of these acts of racism. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva also called on both FIFA and La Liga to take immediate action to combat racism within soccer stadiums and prevent its spread.
The Ministry confirmed that Ambassador Mar Fernandez Palacios was requested to inform on the incident, which has sparked international outrage and demands for accountability. Videos circulating on social media, and verified by Reuters, displayed hundreds of Valencia fans singing racist chants, referring to Vinicius Jr as a monkey as the Real Madrid bus arrived at the stadium before Sunday’s match. The game was interrupted for 10 minutes after the 22-year-old forward pointed out the fans allegedly hurling racist comments towards him.
In a regrettable turn of events, Vinicius was subsequently sent off for his reaction during the incident, further igniting the debate around racism in football. Brazil’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Maria Laura da Rocha, expressed her astonishment at the repeated racist attacks on the player, stating that Vinicius should not have received a red card for not enduring such abuse but rather, racism itself should have been penalised.
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.
