What should have been a night of celebration for Real Madrid turned into a scene of chaos and anger. In the 50th minute, Vinicius Junior scored a spectacular
curling goal to give Madrid a 1-0 lead.
As is his custom, the Brazilian celebrated with a dance near the corner flag. The home crowd at the Estadio da Luz reacted with fury, throwing bottles and lighters onto the pitch. In a move that later drew heavy criticism, French referee Francois Letexier showed Vinicius a yellow card for his celebration.
Moments later, as players moved back to the center circle, Benfica's 20-year-old Argentine midfielder, Gianluca Prestianni, confronted VinÍcius. Cameras captured Prestianni covering his mouth with his jersey-a tactic often used by players to hide their words from lip-readers-before allegedly directing a racial slur at the Madrid star.
The "X" Signal: Match Halted for 10 Minutes
Vinicius immediately went to the referee, visibly shaken, reporting that he had been called a "monkey". Recognizing the severity of the claim, referee Letexier crossed his arms in an "X" shape above his head, the official UEFA signal to activate the anti-racism protocol. The match was suspended for nearly 9 minutes (from the 52nd to the 60th minute).
Real Madrid players, led by Kylian Mbappe and Federico Valverde, surrounded the referee in support of their teammate. Mbappe was seen telling Prestianni directly that his behaviour was "unacceptable. "
Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa told VinÍcius the team was prepared to walk off the pitch if he wished to stop playing. Meanwhile, Benfica coach Jose Mourinho intervened to calm the situation, though he later faced criticism for questioning why such incidents "always happen" around Vinicius.
Despite the hostility, Vinicius decided to continue, and Real Madrid secured a 1-0 victory. However, the fallout on social media was immediate.
Vinicius Jr. on Instagram said, "Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to cover their mouths with their shirts to show how weak they are. Nothing that happened today is new to me. I was shown a yellow card for celebrating a goal. I still don't know why. "
UEFA is expected to launch a formal investigation using high-definition broadcast footage and referee reports. If found guilty, Prestianni could face a multi-match ban, and Benfica may face sanctions including fines or partial stadium closures for the return leg.
The incident has once again sparked a global debate on whether UEFA's current protocols are enough to protect players from systemic abuse on the field.
