Five Real Valladolid fans have been found guilty of racially abusing Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior, according to a ruling in Spain on Wednesday.
According to reports, It is the first time racist insults in a football stadium have been condemned as a hate crime in Spain.
Vinicius was subjected to racist abuse during a La Liga clash against Real Valladolid in September 2022 while walking past the fans after he was subbed off at the Jose Zorrilla stadium.
The Provincial Court of Valladolid handed the five offenders a one-year prison sentence, which has been suspended on the condition they do not commit any further offence in the next three years. They have also been banned from attending any football matches during that period.
Additionally, The court also handed out fines to the five individuals ranging between 1,080 euro (£913) and 1,620 euro (£1,369).
La Liga confirmed the ruling with a statement on Wednesday.
The statement read: “Thanks to the efforts of La Liga, 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.
“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.”
Vinícius testified via video conference last month during the hearing against the five Valladolid fans.
Last year, three Valencia fans were handed eight-month prison sentences after pleading guilty to racially insulting Vinícius.
It was the first conviction for racism-related cases in professional soccer in Spain, but it was not based on a hate crime.
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 antidiscrimination training and was also banned from stadiums for three years.
Vinicius has been a victim of racist abuse several times during his time in Spain.
