Lisbon: Real Madrid's Champions League match against Benfica was halted for nearly 10 minutes on Tuesday after Vinícius Júnior accused an opponent of racially abusing him, triggering UEFA's anti-racism protocol and tense scenes at the Stadium of Light.
The Brazilian forward reported the alleged insult to referee François Letexier in the 52nd minute shortly after scoring a curling goal and celebrating near the corner flag. Letexier stopped play and crossed his arms above his head to signal a racism complaint, while Vinícius moved to the sideline and sat in the dugout as teammates gathered around him.
Cameras showed Vinícius telling the referee that Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni had called him "monkey." The Argentine player had confronted him moments earlier while covering his mouth with his jersey.
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Real Madrid players briefly considered leaving the pitch. "What's happened tonight is a disgrace to football," defender Trent Alexander-Arnold said after the game. "It's overshadowed the performance, especially after such an amazing goal. Vini has been subjected to this a few times throughout his career, and for it to happen tonight and ruin the night for us as a team is a disgrace. There's no place for it in football or society. It's disgusting."
Kylian Mbappé said he checked with Vinícius about how he wanted to proceed before the team agreed to continue. "We can't accept that a player who plays in Europe's top competition behaves like that," Mbappé said. "He shouldn't keep playing in the competition. Let's see what happens now."
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Midfielder Federico Valverde said teammates backed Vinícius during the confrontation. "The players who were near said that (Prestianni) said something ugly, that shouldn't be said," Valverde said. "If you cover your mouth to say something it's because you are saying something that is not nice. I'm proud of my teammates who defended Vini and of Vini."
Benfica players disputed the allegation. "I asked him and he said it was a normal provocation between players during a match," midfielder Leandro Barreiro said. "He said it was nothing racist."
Benfica manager José Mourinho, sent off in the 86th minute for dissent, said he spoke to both players and did not take sides but criticised Vinícius' celebration in front of home fans. "Unfortunately, he was not just happy to score that astonishing goal," Mourinho told Amazon Prime. "When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way."
Mourinho added, "There is something wrong because it happens in every stadium. The stadium where Vinicius played something happened. Always."
Play resumed in the 60th minute with Vinícius repeatedly jeered by sections of the crowd. Bottles and objects were thrown toward Madrid players, and the referee later ordered a stadium announcement warning fans to stop. Vinícius was struck by a bottle near the touchline late in the match.
Prestianni was not booked and was substituted in the 81st minute to applause from Benfica supporters.
After the match, Vinícius posted on Instagram: "Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to cover their mouths with their shirts to show how they are weak. ... Nothing that happened today is new to me in my life and in my family's life. I was shown a yellow card for celebrating a goal. I still don't know why."
The Brazilian Football Confederation expressed support for the player on X, saying he was "not alone" and that "racism is a crime" with "no place in soccer anywhere," calling his complaint to the referee "an example of courage and dignity. We are proud of you."
Madrid held on for a 1-0 victory in a match overshadowed by the incident.