Vinicius Jr. becomes target of racist abuse by Atletico Madrid fans
Real Madrid star forward Vinicius Jr. once again became the latest target of alleged racist abuse by Atletico Madrid fans.
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“Deplorable racist chants…”
The incident occurred before Atletico’s Champions League match against Inter Milan.
Footage emerged on social media of Atletico fans chanting “chimpanzee” as a racial slur towards the Brazilian.
The chant goes: “Ale, ale, ale Vinicius, chimpance.”
Spanish league LaLiga said it will “report the deplorable racist chants” to Spain’s hate crimes prosecutor’s office.
“La Liga will report the deplorable racist chants against Vinicius Jr before Wednesday’s UCL match between Atletico de Madrid and Inter Milan to the Hate Prosecutor’s Office, regardless of the fact that the match was played in another competition and that the chants took place outside the stadium,” a league statement read.
“La Liga is wholeheartedly committed to making football a hate-free space and will continue to work relentlessly to crack down on racism, homophobia, violence and hatred… whatever the competition.”
Vinicius Jr., 24, called out UEFA and the Champions League to investigate the racist abuse incident.
“I hope you have already thought about their punishment @ChampionsLeague @UEFA,” he posted on X (formerly Twitter).
“It’s a sad reality that even happens in games where I’m not present!”
Several racist abuse incidents
However, this isn’t the first that Vinicius Jr. saw himself as a target for racist abuse.
Atletico fans also sang racial slurs outside their stadium before Real’s 2-1 win in LaLiga derby.
In addition, four men were heavily penalized for hanging an effigy of Vinicius Jr. near Real’s training ground in January 2023.
Several reports regarding racist abuse towards Vinicius Jr. this season also resurfaced when Real played Sevilla, Barcelona, and Valencia.
