A Spanish court has sentenced three Valencia fans to eight months in prison for hurling racist abuse at Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior. The Marca newspaper writes about this.
The incident occurred on May 21, 2023 at the match of the 35th round of the Spanish Championship. Valencia beat Real Madrid 1-0 at home. However, Vinicius was insulted several times by home fans before and during the game because of his race. Towards the end of the meeting, the athlete could not stand it and showed the offenders a gesture hinting that Valencia could be disqualified for their behavior, and then got into a fight with the players, for which he received a red card.
Subsequently, the Competition Committee of the Royal Spanish Football Federation overturned Vinicius’ suspension and fined Valencia. Nevertheless, Real Madrid representatives additionally contacted the Spanish Prosecutor General’s Office with a demand to investigate manifestations of racism. On May 23, police detained three suspects.
“This decision is great news for the fight against racism in Spain as it makes amends for the damage done to Vinicius and sends a clear message to those people who go to a football stadium to offend people“, La Liga President Javier Tebas commented on the court ruling.
In his opinion, the precedent will serve as a warning to other football fans.
