UEFA officially launched investigtion into Gianluca Prestianni's alleged racial abuse incident against Vinícius Júnior..
2026-02-23 06:18
UEFA announced on its official website on Sunday that it has officially launched an investigation into the controversial incident in which Benfica's Argentina international winger wonderkid Gianluca Prestianni allegedly racially abused Real Madrid's Brazil international forward Vinícius Júnior.
According to UEFA's official statement, the Ethics and Disciplinary Committee has taken necessary statements from Vinícius Júnior, Prestianni, and the referee involved. If necessary, players who were near the duo at the time will also be summoned to provide statements to aid the investigation.
Because Prestianni covered his mouth with his jersey collar when he made the allegedly racially discriminatory remarks to Vinícius, it is difficult to determine his guilt based solely on the current video evidence.
The incident has now been handed over to an independent third-party investigation panel, including language and speech analysis experts. UEFA's Ethics and Disciplinary Committee will refrain from further public comment until the investigation is complete to ensure its impartiality.
The media and fans are urged not to speculate on the investigation, the incident, or the outcome to avoid confusing the public.
If Prestianni is found guilty of racial discrimination against Vinícius, he will face a suspension of at least six or eight matches and a fine.
Furthermore, according to reports from The Athletic, Gianluca Prestianni has maintained his innocence during his statement, insisting that he only made some homophobic remarks to Vinícius.
Regardless of whether it was racial discrimination or homophobic remarks, Prestianni's words and actions contradict UEFA and FIFA's advocacy for gender equality.
Meanwhile, since Benfica sided with Prestianni even before the investigation results were released, and publicly accused Real Madrid players of being liars and troublemakers, if Prestianni's racial discrimination allegations are proven true, As Ãguias are likely to face further administrative penalties.
Regarding Benfica manager José Mourinho's claim that Prestiani "couldn't be a racist" because the club's greatest player in history was the late legend Eusébio, who is of African descent, many journalists from Western media outlets considered it a naive and extremely irresponsible statement.
A reporter from DAZN Canada sarcastically remarked that when Eusébio played for Benfica, Mourinho was still an infant, and unless he was already in the football industry of that era (the early 1960s), he simply couldn't know the extent to which the greatest Portuguese legend, born in Mozambique, was discriminated against because of his skin color and racial background.
This ugly controversy occurred on February 17, 2026, during Benfica's UEFA Champions League Round of 16s play-off match against Real Madrid. Prestianni suddenly pulled up his shirt collar and covered his mouth, seemingly calling Vinícius Júnior "a monkey" several times.
Upon hearing this, Vinícius immediately left the pitch, halting the game for nearly 10 minutes. During this time, his teammate Kylian Mbappé also spoke out, condemning Prestianni as a "disgusting racist" and demanding he leave the stadium.
Image source: Internet / DAZN Canada
