Vinicius Junior’s red card overturned after racial abuse

Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior was freed from suspension on Tuesday, May 23, after the red card he was awarded during a match against Valencia was rescinded.

Vinicius was awarded his first professional red card for slapping Valencia star, Hugo Duro after he faced off with fans of the club at the end of the Mestalla stadium and pointed out one who had been racially abusing him.

The RFEF (Royal Spanish Football Federation) has now taken action after being criticized over how it handled the incident.

Recall that La Liga President Javier Tebas ignited a worldwide outrage after suggesting that Vinicius has not done enough to wade off racism.

Shortly after handing out a €45,000 (£39,000/$48,000) fine against Valencia over the racial abuse and ordering a partial closure of the club’s stadium, the RFEF rescinded the Real Madrid star’s red card.

The Spanish football federation’s Competition Committee said they accept Real Madrid’s complaint against Vinicius’ red card for hitting Valencia’s Hugo Duro on Sunday after reviewing the video footage.

The initial footage omitted Duro grabbing Vinicius around the neck with his arm moment before the 22-year-old Brazilian slapped him. Duro who is a Spaniard received no punishment as the on-field referee Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea was not shown the events which led to the Brazil international’s reaction.

Vinicius was set to receive a ban that would see him miss the rest of the season but he will now be available for selection again after the decision was overturned. The VAR official on the day of the incident, Ignacio Iglesias Villanueva, has also been stood down for the time being.

The RFEF has also launched a campaign under the slogan ‘Racists, out of football’, which aims to eradicate racist and xenophobic attitudes from football by raising awareness among fans that discriminatory insults or attitudes will not be tolerated.