Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti expressed his dissatisfaction with FIFA’s racism protocol in football following an incident where Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior was subjected to racial abuse by Valencia fans.
The 22-year-old player faced vile racist taunts during a La Liga match at Mestalla on Sunday, leading to the arrest of three fans by Spanish police on Tuesday.
Referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea activated the racism protocol after Vinicius confronted the fans, identifying one individual who had directed abuse at him.
FIFA’s three-step process involves pausing the match until a stadium announcement is made to address the racist abuse, which occurred at Mestalla.
Ancelotti criticized the protocol, stating, “The protocol is obsolete. It should have been applied when the team bus arrived at the stadium because the insults started there. Two hours before the game, and it was not an isolated case. Someone from Valencia said it was, but it was not just one or two people, even if it wasn’t the 46,000 spectators.”
Video footage emerged on Monday showing Valencia fans chanting racial slurs at Vinicius when Real Madrid arrived at Mestalla.
Ancelotti emphasized that the protocol should start addressing such issues long before the 70th minute of a game, suggesting it should be in place from two hours before kickoff and throughout the match.
Vinicius was later sent off during the game for an incident involving Valencia’s Hugo Duro and will be unavailable to play against Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday. Ancelotti mentioned that the player did not train on Tuesday due to knee discomfort.
While Ancelotti disagreed with Vinicius’ statement labeling Spain as a “racist country,” he called for decisive action to combat racism. He stated, “Spain is not racist, I have to say that too, but there is racism in Spain, like in other places, and that has to end. It’s a moment to take drastic measures. Institutions now have an opportunity to implement radical actions regarding this crucial issue.”
