Racism in LaLiga: Real Madrid's Vinícius Júnior shines light on old problem in Spanish football
The vile abuse aimed at the Brazilian last Sunday is nothing new, but at least the issue is being talked about. Hopefully, over time, it can also be solved...
Spain’s problem with racism in football is not new. The awful abuse aimed at Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior in Valencia last Sunday is merely a repeat of the horrific treatment already received by the Brazilian across the country in recent times. And before him, there were many others.
In 1993, Rayo Vallecano’s Nigerian goalkeeper Wilfred Agbonavbare was abused by numerous Real Madrid fans at the Santiago Bernabéu, basically because his superb saves stopped their team from winning in a 1-1 draw. “Black bastard, go and pick cotton,” a large group of supporters sang in unison.
Real’s Roberto Carlos was targeted at Camp Nou in 1997 in a banner which called him a monkey and in chants which referred to him as a chimpanzee. His complaints were even dismissed by a young Pep Guardiola. “That man talks a lot,” the former Barcelona midfielder said. “He talks too much, he doesn’t know our fans and he hasn’t been here for long enough to justify these things.”
In 2005, Zaragoza fans made monkey noises to abuse Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o. The Cameroonian responded by dancing like a monkey himself and after the game, he warned that the problem was getting worse. Back at La Romareda the following season, Eto’o was abused again and attempted to leave the pitch. His team-mates persuaded him to stay on.
Cameroonian goalkeepers Thomas N’Kono and Carlos Kameni both complained about having bananas thrown at them during their time in Spain with Espanyol. The same thing happened to Barça’s Dani Alves in a game at Villarreal in 2014. The Brazilian picked it up and ate it.
More recently, Athletic Club attacker Iñaki Williams and Villarreal’s Samu Chukwueze have been targeted at Espanyol and Mallorca, respectively. Valencia’s Mouctar Diakhaby also allegedly suffered racial abuse in a game against Cádiz in 2021, though no audio evidence could be found and no action was taken. This week, the defender refused to stand behind LaLiga’s new anti-racism banner.
No current player has had to put up with as much abuse as Vinícius. Still the idea persists among many that it is somehow his fault: that he is provocative, that he winds people up, that he has it coming. In the aftermath of the abuse he received at Mestalla, the Brazilian was even attacked by LaLiga president Javier Tebas, who later apologised, in an extraordinary exchange on Twitter.
Vinícius is right to call out the racists and his enormous popularity on Twitter and Instagram, allied with Madrid’s media influence, is making people sit up and take notice. And while that may seem unfair on others who have been less visible before him, it is at least shining a light on a problem which desperately needs to be addressed.
So how can it be solved? Fans are being banned from stadiums, but could still find their way in to different parts of the grounds. Equally, partial closures are unlikely to eradicate the problem. LaLiga have been frustrated that the authorities have not acted strongly to punish these offences and for racism to disappear from Spanish stadiums, much tougher action is required. Tebas, perhaps concerned by the very real threat of losing sponsors and revenue, has now called for help to impose sanctions and all of that is likely to take time. But at least everyone is finally talking about the issue...