REAL MADRID star Vinicius Jnr has accused the Spanish football authorities of not doing anything to curb ongoing on-field racist abuse.
The head of La Liga Javier Tebas has hit back at Vinicius accusing him of not turning up to meetings arranged to discuss the issue.
The Brazilian football star says he is fed up with talking and says nothing is being done and even went on to say that Spanish football belonged to racists.
He has the backing of his government – which switched off the lights at the famous Jesus Christ the Redeemer statue that overlooks the city of Rio de Janerio.
Vinicius Jnr posted a longer statement on his Twitter: “It was not the first time, nor the second, nor the third. Racism is normal in La Liga. The competition thinks it’s normal, the Federation does too, and the opponents encourage it. I’m so sorry. The championship that once belonged to Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Cristiano [Ronaldo], and [Lionel] Messi today belongs to racists.
“A beautiful nation, which welcomed me and which I love, but which agreed to export the image of a racist country to the world. I’m sorry for the Spaniards who don’t agree, but today, in Brazil, Spain is known as a country of racists.
“And unfortunately, for everything that happens each week, I have no defence. I agree. But I am strong, and I will fight to the end against racists. Even if that is far from here.”
Javier Tebas, the president of La Liga, responded to Vinicius’ tweets in an uncommon way by accusing the Brazilian of “insulting” the Spanish league.
Vinicius allegedly skipped “two agreed dates” to discuss La Liga’s response to racial abuse, according to Tebas.
La Liga issued a statement in which it stated that it will launch an inquiry into the Valencia event on Sunday and would take legal action if “any hate crime is detected.”
The event was detailed in the game’s official referee report.
“Racist insults: in the 73rd minute, a spectator from the southern ‘Mario Kempes’ tribune directed himself towards player No. 20 of Real Madrid CF Mr. Vinicius José De Oliveira Do Nascimiento, screaming at him: ‘Monkey, monkey’ which led to the activation of the racism protocol, notifying the pitch delegate so that a corresponding warning over the loudspeaker would be made. The match was halted until said announcement was aired over the loudspeaker of the stadium,” it reads.
After getting into an altercation with Valencia player Hugo Duro, Vinicius Jr. was dismissed from the game in the closing moments.
Micah Richards, an English football pundit and former professional player, claims that Tebas, the president of La Liga, “makes my blood boil” for the way he handled the racial abuse that Real Madrid striker Vinicius Jr. received.
This season, Vinicius has endured several instances of racial abuse, and after the most recent incident, the footballing community came to his defence.
The prevalence of racism at stadiums is not unique to Spain.
The authorities in Italy have also come under fire for not doing enough to combat the long-standing issue of racism in sports.
During a Coppa Italia semifinal earlier that month, 171 Juventus supporters racially abused Inter Milan striker Romelu Lukaku. As a result, they received stadium bans in April.
After losing to Argentina in the World Cup final, members of the France national team, notably star striker Kylian Mbappe, faced racial abuse online.
Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka of England also faced such abuse after missing penalties in the Euro 2020 final.
Subscribe for our weekly news letter here!
You can unsubscribe us at any time
