Gianni Infantino reaffirms world football governing body’s commitment to taking “appropriate action” against offenders
Fifa president Gianni Infantino is “shocked and saddened” by the alleged act of racist abuse toward Real Madrid player Vinicius Junior.
Madrid faced Benfica in the Champions League on Tuesday and Vinicius scored the only goal of the game early in the second half, but his excellent strike was overshadowed by a rude gesture towards the home supporters that earned him a yellow card, before Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni covered his mouth with his shirt and hurled abuse towards Vinicius.
“i was shocked and saddened to see the incident of alleged racism towards vinicius junior in the Uefa Champions League match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid CF,” Infantino said.
“There is absolutely no room for racism in our sport and in society – we need all the relevant stakeholders to take action and hold those responsible to account.
“At Fifa, through the Global Stand Against Racism and the Players’ Voice Panel, we are committed to ensuring that players, officials and fans are respected and protected, and that appropriate action is taken when incidents occur.”
“I commend referee Francois Letexier for activating the anti-racism protocol by using the arm gesture to stop the game and address the situation.
“Fifa and football show full solidarity to victims of racism and any form of discrimination. I will always continue to reiterate: No to racism! No to any form of discrimination!”
Infantino has previously been outspoken to condemn events of racial abuse, especially in Spain where it is relatively frequent.
After Spanish authorities began to hand down suspended prison sentences, fines and stadium bans to suspects found guilty of racial abuse towards players, Infantino said in a statement that he was “pleased to see the firm action and sentencing taken by the Spanish authorities”, calling it “a positive step”.
“Our message to people anywhere in the world who still behave in a racist way when they are dealing with football is clear: we don’t want you,” said Infantino.
“These people have to be excluded. They are not part of our community and not part of football.”
