Spain fines 7 people for racist Vinicius
On June 5, 11 days after the arrest of those involved in separate racist cases against Vinicius, the State Commission Against Violence, Racism, Xenophobia and Intolerance in Sports of Spain issued a fine.
Four of them were fined $65,000 and banned from sports venues for two years, for allegedly hanging a dummy wearing a Vinicius jersey on a bridge near Real's training ground. The dummy was hung by a noose around her neck with the words "Madrid hates Real", on the morning before the derby between Real and Atletico in the King's Cup in January 2023.
Spanish police say they have identified four suspects through DNA traces, witnesses and other intelligence documents. Three of these men were "extremists of a group of Madrid fans". The ages of those arrested were 19, 21, 23 and 24.
Three others were fined $5,300 and banned from sports venues for a year for making racist gestures towards Vinicius during Real's match against Valencia at the Mestalla Stadium in round 35 of La Liga on May 21.
The fact that Vinicius was racist by Valencia fans has become a hot topic in Spain in recent weeks. Many famous players and experts have spoken out in defense of Vinicius, while the Brazilian government has demanded that the Spanish and La Liga governments have strict sanctions.
Brazil will play friendlies against Guinea on June 17 and Senegal three days later, as part of an anti-apartheid campaign. The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has also announced that it will play a friendly match against Brazil in March 2024 in a match calling for the elimination of racism with the name: "We are all the same".
Real filed a complaint with the State Attorney General's Office, specifically with the Anti-Discrimination Prosecutor's Office, so that it can investigate the facts and clarify responsibility. The owner of the Bernabeu also quoted article 124 of the Spanish Constitution, which clearly states the functions of the Prosecutor's Office to promote justice activities to protect the legitimacy and rights of citizens as well as the public interest.
On May 23, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) issued a penalty to close the stands named Mario Kempes of the Mestalla Stadium - where fans insulted Vinicius - for five matches and demanded Valencia pay $ 50,000. Valencia considers the fine and disqualification of fans unrelated to the unfortunate incident a "completely disproportionate, unfair and unprecedented measure", and has appealed the penalty. .
After that, RFEF reduced the penalty, when Valencia only had to pay $20,000. However, the penalty of closing the stands named Mario Kempes of the Mestalla Stadium for five games is upheld.
In a press conference on May 25, La Liga President Javier Tebas said the league could eliminate racism in six months if it was given stronger sanctions. Tebas denied Spain was racist, but acknowledged concerns about the league's global image in light of the latest allegations. However, he is not worried this issue will prevent players of color from signing with La Liga clubs.
La Liga has set up dedicated reporting channels, via email and the official website, to speed up the identification of those engaged in racist behaviour. Since the establishment of La Liga's security and integrity department in 2015, according to documents provided by the league, just over 10 incidents of racism related to matches have been reported, which is an average less than two crops a year.
However, Spain's number one league also lists nine separate incidents involving Vinicius since December 2022, four of which have been resolved and only two have been found to be discriminatory. race, and the clubs involved are allowed to make their own sanctions.
