Week in and week out, Real Madrid superstar Vinicius Junior continues to be the victim of racism in LaLiga stadiums, with supporters of other clubs hurling racial slurs and conducting themselves in a manner that should be entirely unacceptable.
These are criminally punishable acts that could also be punished at a league level by LaLiga and the Spanish FA, and there was actually a case in 2023 when Atletico Madrid supporters were finally held legally accountable for a disgusting act of racism against Vinicius Jr. that included an effigy mocking the Real Madrid star.
This past weekend, Vinicius Jr. had another strong performance for Real Madrid in a 2-0 win over Real Sociedad, scoring the penalty and shushing the crowd in a celebration that became a bigger talking point in the Spanish press than the reason for his response.
That response was to silence the racist jeering in the Anoeta. And the response back has been too silent from reporters and fans outside of Real Madrid, with seemingly only very few coming in public support of Vinicius Jr. as this racism continues to be subtly normalized by the governing bodies, media, and public.
Thankfully, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is at least one of those vocally backing Vinicius Jr. The Italian coach had this to say in the build-up to Tuesday night’s Champions League opener against Bundesliga side Stuttgart:
“What has happened to Vinicius all these years… it’s something unbearable. I don’t know how he can handle it. I wouldn’t be able. It’s inadmissible. I think they do this because they see how dangerous he is.”
Unfortunately, Carlo is right about the fact that Vinicius Jr. is a target because he is an unstoppable Ballon d’Or player who unsettles rival fans, but, alas, the other part of it is the sad fact that there are far too many racist people out there – and far too many people who are racist and know they can get away with it.
The fact that Vinicius Jr. shines despite what he is forced to deal with and the lack of protections is remarkable, and it is even more incredible how he bravely keeps fighting to stop other Black players from having to go through this.
But he shouldn’t have to. Most certainly, too, he shouldn’t have to keep fighting this fight alone.
The managing editor of The Trivela Effect, Kevin has 15 years of experience in digital media. He covered Real Madrid from 2019-2022 for The Real Champs as a site manager. His work has been featured in ESPN, Bleacher Report, Yahoo! Sports, NBC Sports, and other major outlets. You can contact him at the site’s official Twitter handle @TrivelaEffect or via the site’s official email thetrivelaeffect@gmail.com.