Brazilian striker Vinicius Junior has urged that Spain be stripped of its 2030 World Cup hosting rights if it fails to address racism in stadiums.
In an interview aired on CNN Tuesday, the Real Madrid star, who has frequently faced racist abuse from opposition fans at La Liga games, emphasized the need for significant progress in changing attitudes within Spanish society.
“Until 2030, there is a lot of room for improvement, so I hope that Spain can evolve and understand how serious it is to insult someone because of the colour of their skin,” the 24-year-old striker said.
“If by 2030 things don’t improve, I think we have to move the location because if a player doesn’t feel comfortable and safe playing in a country where they can suffer racism, it’s a bit difficult.”
His comments caused an uproar in Spain, which will host the 2030 World Cup alongside Spain and Morocco, with three matches also taking place in Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.
“Spain is in no way a racist country,” Vinicius’s Real Madrid teammate Dani Carvajal told a news conference on Wednesday, adding Spain “does not deserve to be deprived of the World Cup”.
“I know what Vinicius has to put up with but La Liga is improving and protocols are being drawn up so that these people can no longer take part in sporting events,” the defender said.
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Spain national team coach Luis de la Fuente agreed with Carvajal.
“There are always undesirables but Spain is not racist, it is an example of coexistence and integration,” he said.
Madrid’s conservative mayor Jose Luis Martinez-Almeida condemned Vinicius’s comments, calling them “deeply unfair”, and said he should apologise.
A Spanish court in June handed three Valencia fans eight-month jail terms for racist abuse towards Vinicius Junior at a La Liga match last year, the first such conviction in Spain.
In July, another person was given an eight-month suspended jail term for online racist abuse targeting Vinicius and his German Real Madrid teammate Antonio Rudiger.