The Vinicius case and the role of LaLiga against racism

The employer does not have the power to sanction, but persecutes and denounces each violent act in a broad strategy

MADRID, 7 Ene. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The scourge of racism in sport and, specifically, in Spanish football is once again in focus due to what happened at the José Zorrilla last week, when the Real Madrid player Vinicius Jr denounced racist insults and asked LaLiga to "do "Something, a ball on the roof of LaLiga that the employers have been fighting for years, but in which they do not have the power to sanction.

"The racists continue to go to the stadiums and see the biggest club in the world up close and LaLiga continues to do nothing," the Brazilian wrote on his social networks after the game in Valladolid. However, the employers' association and the president of LaLiga himself, Javier Tebas, responded immediately. "It is very unfortunate, unfair and it is not true to publish that LaLiga does nothing against racism, find out more," Tebas posted on Twitter.

The president of the Professional Soccer League was referring to the fact that they have been fighting for years against the serious problem of racism, especially with complaints before the Justice and before the State Commission against Violence, Racism, Xenophobia and Intolerance in sport , of which he is a member.

Many of these complaints do not prosper in the Prosecutor's Office, but LaLiga squeezes the judicial channels, such as the repeated appeals until the recent sentence of the 'Jimmy case'. The Legal and Integrity and Security departments are in charge of this and, in addition, LaLiga appears as an accusation in any criminal proceeding related to violent acts that occurred in the field of football.

However, when imposing sanctions, the responsibility lies with the Government Delegation, the Secretary of State for Security, the Ministry of the Interior and the Council of Ministers (according to Law 19/2007) and, on the other hand, with the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and its Competition Committee (according to articles 34 et seq. of Law 19/2007).

LaLiga therefore fulfills its role by persecuting and denouncing, as it is known to do weekly, violence in the stadiums and surroundings of LaLiga Santander and LaLiga Smartbank, but it is not the one who imposes administrative or sporting sanctions.

As Europa Press has learned, since the creation of the LaLiga Integrity and Security Department (in the 15/16 season) more than a dozen racist incidents/actions linked to LaLiga matches have been verified, all of them investigated and/or or denounced before the competent bodies and instances.

The persecution of the employers within the fields covers different fronts, from the analysis of the audio and digital files as well as the commissioning of external expert reports with the analysis of lip reading, to provide all this information when filing the complaints . Cases of racist insults by fans to players also go to the Hate Prosecutor's Office.

Currently, there are several cases in court while others are finding a resolution, with Vinicius mostly, due to racist shouting received at the Camp Nou, in Mallorca and in the Cívitas Metropolitano. After the 2021 Clásico, the LaLiga complaint was filed because the perpetrators could not be identified. In the Son Moix duel, the employers also denounced racist insults against 'Vini' but it was also filed by the Prosecutor's Office for what they judged to be profane attitudes, but without criminal dimension.

The same events that occurred on September 18, 2022 inside and outside the Cívitas Metropolitano stadium, before and during the Atlético de Madrid - Real Madrid match, were also denounced. The case was filed by the Hate Prosecutor's Office because it ruled that there was no specific act to impute to a specific person.

Meanwhile, in the recent case of insults to Vinicius in Valladolid, the one that has returned the unpleasant subject to Spanish sport, LaLiga denounced the Anti-Violence Commission, the RFEF Competition Committee and has urged criminal actions, exhausting the avenues and powers that they assist you on the matter.

On the other hand, there is still no date for an oral trial against those who uttered racist insults to the Athletic Club judge Iñaki Williams, during the match against Espanyol in 2020, when he was leaving, replaced by one of the funds from the RCDE Stadium.

In addition, Nico Williams received racist yelling on March 13, 2022 at the Benito Villamarín stadium that the Prosecutor's Office described as incorrect but without reaching a criminal offense. LaLiga acted in the same way in the case of Carlos Akapo, when the then Cádiz CF player was the target of racism at the Los Cármenes Stadium.

The role of LaLiga, with regular meetings with the Ministry of Equality and with the Ministry of Social Rights and the 2030 Agenda, includes other actions, such as the delivery of the 'player's manual', where players are made aware of violence and racism and are encouraged to respect and report such conduct. Together with the General Directorate of the Police, training sessions are given to the stadium security guards and the fan also has his manual.

Prepared in collaboration with the Peñas Federations, it is distributed in the stadiums at the beginning of the season and the practices that must represent the values ​​of the sport are remembered. LaLiga collaborates with the clubs with messages against racism and xenophobia on the public address system, video scoreboards and on social networks.