Vinicius Junior faces ongoing racism: Teammates rally in support

Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior has received support from his teammates following another distressing incident of racism during their match against Valencia.

This marks the tenth reported case of racism against the Brazilian player, in addition to a previous incident involving an effigy of Vinicius being displayed on a bridge.

After the match, Thibaut Courtois and other teammates expressed their solidarity with Vinicius, while manager Carlo Ancelotti expressed his anger.

Courtois, speaking to Movistar+, stated, “Someday you have to put a camera focusing only on those people. They have made gestures of all sorts to me too… today’s football is going to the ground to insult and not to cheer for teams. If ‘Vini’ had told me that he didn’t want to play, I would have left the pitch with him.”

Courtois further revealed that Vinicius had considered stopping play due to the incident, to which he responded, “At one point he said he was stopping, and then that he was continuing on. I would have gone with him because it is something that we cannot tolerate.”

The goalkeeper also highlighted the act of racism and called for stricter measures, drawing attention to a previous case where Valencia denounced a Cadiz player for a similar offense.

Courtois emphasized the need to take immediate action, stating that in Belgium, stadiums are closed when such incidents occur.

As these incidents persist and escalate, it becomes increasingly apparent that stronger penalties may be necessary.

Real Madrid may even consider abandoning a game in the future if such incidents persist.

The relevant authorities are likely to be compelled to take action this time, despite the fact that these incidents should have been eradicated months ago.