Spanish football has taken an enormous step forward in combatting racism in the country after a local court sentenced three men to prison for racially abusing Vinicius Jr. of Real Madrid in 2023.
This is the first ever conviction due to racism in the country and is seen by many as the right step towards eliminating discrimination in the sport, especially against African players.
The three suspects will spend eight months in prison and are banned from stadiums for two years.
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The verdict initially included 12 months in jail and a three-year stadium ban, but these were reduced after they decided to accept criminal responsibility.
They were found guilty of a crime against moral integrity - aggravated by racially motivated discrimination, which under Spanish laws Criminal Code under article 173.1 merits prison time.
The incident occurred in May last year at Valencia's Mestalla Stadium during the two clubs' La Liga match.
Incident stems from an effigy of Vinicius
Four men were arrested for hanging an effigy of Vinicius on a bridge at that time, although it was not identified if they were Valencia fans.
The authorities said they arrested three men who are members of an ultra-fan group of a Madrid-based club. This club was once tagged as a group that represents a high risk of violence.
Vinicius Jr. called out the league for not acting swiftly on the incident and said they are normalizing racism.
He also expressed frustration over the slow progress of the case.
LaLiga President Javier Tebas welcomed the conviction, saying it redresses the suffering of Vinicius and that it is a warning that the league will come after those who will commit similar hate crimes.
He also acknowledged that it took the court a year to reach a sentence.
"I understand that there may be some frustration at the length of time it takes for these sentences to be handed down, but this shows that Spain is a country that guarantees judicial integrity," he said.
"LaLiga can only respect the pace of justice, and once again demand that Spanish legislation evolves so that LaLiga has sanctioning powers that can speed up the fight against racism."
Vinicius Jr's reaction earned praises
The 23-year-old Brazilian forward has become an anti-racism activist since the incident.
He welcomed the verdict on the three suspects but insisted he was not a victim of racism.
He said that the legal victory was for all black people.
"Many asked me to ignore it; many others said that my fight was in vain and that I should just "play football."
But, as I've always said, I'm not a victim of racism. I am a tormentor of racists. This first criminal conviction in the history of Spain is not for me. It's for all black people," he said on X.
The reaction garnered admiration from X users, who said his quote represented his relentless pursuit of justice.
Some even thought that his quote about being a tormentor resembled something a superhero or vigilante would say.
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