Five guilty of hate crime for racist abuse of Vinicius, says LaLiga

Five people were handed prison sentences for racially abusing Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr during a match in a landmark first ruling in Spain that condemned racist insults in a soccer stadium as a hate crime, LaLiga said on Wednesday.

In December 2022, Brazil international Vinicius appeared to be subjected to abuse in Real's 2-0 win away to Real Valladolid as he walked past fans after being substituted at the Jose Zorrilla stadium.

The Provincial Court of Valladolid imposed on the five offenders a year in prison and fines ranging from 1,080 euros ($1,226.12) to 1,620 euros.

The prison sentences were suspended on condition that they do not commit any offence in the next three years, while they are also not allowed to attend any matches in the same period.

"Thanks to the efforts of LaLiga, which filed the complaint and initially acted as the sole private prosecution - later joined by the player Vinicius and Real Madrid, as well as the Public Prosecutor's Office - this exemplary ruling has been achieved," LaLiga said in a statement.

"This judicial decision represents an unprecedented milestone in the fight against racism in sport in Spain, where, until now, rulings had addressed conduct against moral integrity with a racial aggravating factor.

"The fact that this ruling explicitly refers to hate crimes associated with racist insults reinforces the message that intolerance has no place in football."

Prison sentences of less than two years for non-violent crimes in Spain rarely require a defendant without previous convictions to serve jail time.

In June last year, three Valencia fans were sentenced to eight months in prison for insulting Vinicius with "shouts, gestures and chants referring to the colour of his skin".

In September, a fan who racially abused Vinicius and Villarreal player Samuel Chukwueze in two games at Mallorca in 2023 was found guilty and handed a suspended prison sentence.

The aggressor had a 12-month sentence suspended after apologising in a letter to Vinicius and undergoing anti-discrimination training but was also banned from stadiums for three years.