Mallorca fan sentenced for racially abusing Vinicius Jr

A Real Mallorca fan who racially abused Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr and former Villarreal winger Samuel Chukwueze has been given a 12-month suspended prison sentence by a Spanish court.

In a statement, external Real Madrid confirmed that the supporter, who was also banned from stadiums for three years, had his sentence suspended after apologising by letter to the Brazil international and doing anti-discrimination training.

“Real Madrid will keep working to protect the club’s values and eradicate any racist behaviour in the world of football and sport,” said the La Liga giants.

Madrid also said another supporter of Mallorca, a minor who racially abused midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni, had also been banned from stadiums for a year.

The abuse of Vinicius Jr occurred during Madrid’s 1-0 La Liga defeat by Real Mallorca at their Son Moix stadium in February 2023.

The man then directed racial slurs towards Nigeria international Chukwueze, now at AC Milan, a fortnight later.

It is the third criminal conviction in recent months for racist insults towards Real Madrid players, in particular Vinicius, who has been the victim of abuse in stadiums across the country since arriving in Spain in 2018.

In June, three Valencia fans were sentenced to eight months in prison for racist abuse directed at the 24-year-old at the Mestalla Stadium in May 2023.

Earlier in September, Vinicius called for Spain to be stripped of its 2030 World Cup hosting duties unless it makes progress on the issue of racism in stadiums.

On Sunday, Real Madrid visit city rivals Atletico at the Metropolitano Stadium, where Vinicius has also previously been subjected to racist abuse.