On Tuesday, Spanish police arrested seven people between Madrid and Valencia in relation to racist incidents involving Brazilian footballer Vinícius Júnior in recent months. Of these seven people, four were arrested in Madrid on charges of hanging a black mannequin wearing Vinícius’ shirt from a bridge last January. The others are three of the many Valencia fans who in the last league match against Real Madrid had addressed insults and racist chants at the player.
After the events in Valencia last Sunday many football teams from all over the world had shown their support for Vinícius, as did the Brazilian president Lula in a press conference from Japan – where he was for the G7 – and the president of FIFA Gianni Infantino. Spanish justice is treating these latest episodes as hate crimes and local newspapers say identifications and arrests will continue in the coming weeks.
