Valencia have been punished for a racist offense against Vinicius Junior (23, Real Madrid) at their home stadium.
“Following an incident that occurred during the La Liga match between Valencia and Real Madrid, the Competition Committee orders the partial closure of the Mestalla stadium and, more specifically, the Mario Kempes South Stand for five matches,” the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) announced on its website and other official channels on Thursday.
As a result, Valencia will play their one remaining home game this season and their first four home games of next season with the stands behind the south goal empty.
“As stated by the referee, the racist shouting directed at Vinicius during the match altered the normal course of the game and the offense has proven to be serious. In addition, we are fining Valencia 45,000 euros (approximately $64 million), which can be appealed within 10 business days.”
The match between Valencia and Real Madrid in the 35th round of the 2022-2023 La Liga season was played on April 22 at the Estadio de Mestalla in Valencia, Spain, with Valencia winning 1-0. However, the match was not without controversy due to the racial abuse directed at Vinicius by the crowd.
Valencia fans taunted Vinicius before the game, calling him “monkey” and making monkey noises. The racist comments continued during the match, leading to Vinicius’ outburst. 스포츠토토
Sky Sports in the UK reported that RFEF learned from the match report that racist chants were directed at Vinicius from the time the Real team bus first arrived at the Mestalla stadium.
It added that objects were thrown at Vinicius from the Kempes stand in the 28th minute of the second half before the racist chanting began in the 26th minute.
Earlier, Spanish police said they had arrested seven men in connection with a separate racist incident targeting Vinicius. Police said three of the men were “radicalized fans of the Madrid group” who had previously been placed on a “high risk” list.