Spain takes action against racism after Vinícius case but punishing fans remains a challenge

The attention brought by the latest case of abuse against Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior has taken Spain to what could be a turning point in the fight against racism in soccer.

The attention brought by the latest case of abuse against Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior has taken Spain to what could be a turning point in the fight against racism in soccer.

Never before had local authorities acted so quickly to take action against fans who insulted players, and never before had soccer officials sanctioned a club so harshly for their fans' racist behaviour.

Things have clearly changed since Vinícius threw the spotlight on Spain by pointing a finger, literally, at those who racially abused him last weekend in Valencia. But some of the challenges that existed before Vinícius' case stirred Spain into action are still in place, especially when it comes to punishing fans criminally for their abuse.

No one has ever gone to trial in Spain for racially abusing a player, and despite the unprecedented attention prompted by the recent Vinícius case, it may not be easy to get fans to start paying for their actions in court.

Similar cases of abuse like the one faced by Vinícius on Sunday have been shelved by prosecutors in the past, including a few others involving the Brazilian player.

Spain created a specific law against violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sports in 2007, but not all cases of racism can be punished criminally, only those in which there is an additional intent to harm the victim physically or morally. There is a lot of leeway for interpretation and most cases, including “monkey” chants like the ones made against Vinícius, end up falling into a category in which punishment only includes fines and bans from stadiums.

“What is it going to take to criminalise these people?” Vinícius said this week in one of his many posts on Twitter criticising the lack of action against racism in Spain.