Once again La Liga have submitted a formal complaint to the Anti-Violence Committee following racist chants towards Vinicius Junior.
It is their eighth such complaint, with racism become a major problem for Spanish football this season – five of those incidents have occurred since the World Cup too, with the frequency seemingly on the increase.
The latest incident occurred at Camp Nou, when Vinicius was abused by Barcelona fans. There were loud chants of Vinicius, Muerete [Vinicius, die] hear at the ground, but cameras have also picked up racial abuse, calling the Brazilian ‘monkey, son of a b****’.
"¡Así, así, así gana el Madrid!", se escucha en el Camp Nou.
El chiste se cuenta solo.
— Mario Cortegana (@MarioCortegana) March 19, 2023
A similar incident occurred last season at Camp Nou, but no action was taken after the culprits were not found, as pointed out by Diario AS.
So far fans found to have committed the abuse have been fined €4k by authorities and handed a year-long ban from sporting events. However given the continued abuse aimed at Vinicius, there is a strong argument that the punishment should be increased. The current sanctions are clearly not working as a deterrant, and Vincius should not have to subjected to such treatment at work.
