Court slaps stadium bans, fines on ‘Madrid hates Real' plotters behind Vinicius Jr effigy stunt

MADRID, June 16 — Four people have been handed suspended jail sentences by a Madrid Court after being found guilty of a hate crime related to an effigy of Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr, Spain's LaLiga said in a statement today.
They were all involved in hanging a banner reading 'Madrid hates Real' and an inflatable black effigy in a replica of the Brazilian's No. 20 shirt on a bridge before a Copa del Rey match against Atletico Madrid in January 2023.
According to the ruling, one defendant was sentenced to 15 months in prison for a hate crime and an additional seven months for making threats, having distributed images of the act online. The other three were sentenced to seven months in prison for hate crimes and seven months for threats.
They will not serve prison time, however, after all four signed a letter of apology to Vinicius, Real Madrid, LaLiga and the Spanish football federation (RFEF).
'The defendant who posted the video online received a special disqualification from working in education, sports, or recreational youth settings for four years and three months, while the others received three years and seven months,' the LaLiga statement said.
The first defendant was fined €1,084 (RM5,322) and the other three €720, with additional punishments including a 1,000m restraining order from Vinicius, his home and workplace, and a ban on approaching football stadiums during LaLiga or RFEF matches.
They will all be required to participate in an educational programme on equal treatment and non-discrimination in order for the prison sentences imposed to be suspended.
There was no immediate confirmation from the court and no immediate reaction from Vinicius. — Reuters

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

The Star

7 hours ago

• The Star

Nurul Izzah calls for immediate govt action to combat online child sexual exploitation

PETALING JAYA: Nurul Izzah Anwar has called for immediate and coordinated government action to combat online child sexual exploitation. The PKR deputy president described the issue as a 'national disgrace' that demanded collective responsibility from the authorities and society. Her remarks come in the wake of the exposure of a Facebook group, Group Budak2 Sekolah Rendah, which had amassed more than 12,000 members who were allegedly sharing and passively viewing sexually explicit content involving primary school children. "This is not just an alarming incident; it is a national disgrace. "Shutting down the group is not enough. We need immediate, coordinated and decisive actions,' she said in a statement Sunday (June 22). She urged agencies such as the Communications Ministry, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), police and the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry to intensify efforts against digital predators preying on children. She called on the MCMC and the Communications Ministry to disclose their current monitoring mechanisms and to demonstrate their effectiveness in detecting child exploitation online. She also urged police and the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry to release public updates on the recent case and similar cases that have remained outside public scrutiny. Nurul Izzah also demanded a progress report on the implementation of the Online Safety Act and a briefing in Parliament on the effectiveness of the D11 sexual crimes unit, including additional funding to enhance its operations. "Malaysia must upgrade its systems to provide early warning for the public. "To protect our children, we must emulate global initiatives like the Europe-Latin America Initiative for the Safety of Children and Adolescents, a cross-continental police cooperation network tackling child exploitation online,' she said. Nurul Izzah also proposed public access to the Child Sexual Offender Registry, which was established in 2019, not for public shaming but to safeguard communities. She urged the Education Ministry to strengthen its health syllabus with digital safety awareness topics. "We applaud social media activists and influencers such as Mekyun and others for bravely exposing online sexual exploitation to raise public awareness. "It is time to band together,' she said. The former Permatang Pauh MP also spoke of her own experience as a victim of online threats, when she received gang rape threats earlier this year. She said the individual was formally charged with 11 counts of posting indecent and obscene comments about her on Facebook. Nurul Izzah stressed that while legal tools exist to tackle online sexual crimes, many gaps remain in terms of enforcement, awareness and prevention. According to official 2023 data, child sexual crimes increased by 26.5%, while child pornography cases surged by an alarming 139.3%. 'These are not just numbers. They are a collective cry for immediate, systemic reform, not just well-worded laws that gather dust,' she said. She announced that PKR is launching a grassroots campaign to focus on raising public awareness, creating safe spaces for children and strengthening community partnerships with NGOs and educational institutions. 'Parents, teachers, religious leaders, NGOs and the public must rise to protect our children from this growing digital threat,' she said.

Malay Mail

10 hours ago

• Malay Mail

Guardiola admits not even Club World Cup glory can save City's disappointing season

PHILADELPHIA, June 22 — Winning the Club World Cup title again would not make up for the disappointing 2024-25 season that Manchester City have had, manager Pep Guardiola said ahead of today's Group G clash with Emirati side Al-Ain in Atlanta. Guardiola's City fell short of winning the Premier League for the fifth time in a row, finishing third in the English top-flight. They also failed to reach the Champions League's round of 16, being eliminated by Real Madrid in the knockout phase playoffs. 'I said many times, the season was not good,' Guardiola told reporters on Saturday. 'Winning this competition is not going to change that, but my mindset at the moment is not about winning the competition. We can extend our time here, being here longer.' Guardiola, who has won the Club World Cup four times as manager, guided City to their first world title in 2023, before the tournament was revamped as a 32-team competition to be held once every four years. City, who beat Morocco's Wydad Casablanca 2-0 in their campaign opener, have a chance to qualify for the round of 16 with a win over Al-Ain, who suffered a 5-0 loss to Juventus in their first game. 'Now we're here, I want to do the best. I want to enjoy the moment here because you're here one time every four years... And I want to arrive in the latter stages,' Guardiola added. — Reuters

New Straits Times

15 hours ago

• New Straits Times

Mbappe out of second Real Madrid Club World Cup clash

PALM BEACH GARDENS, UNITED STATES: Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe did not travel to Charlotte for the team's Club World Cup match against Pachuca, but could be back for the final group stage game, coach Xabi Alonso said on Saturday. The French superstar was taken to hospital on Thursday for tests and treatment after suffering gastroenteritis, before later being released. Mbappe is improving "bit by bit" a club source told AFP, but he did not fly with his team-mates for Sunday's match against Mexican side Pachuca. Real coach Xabi Alonso addressed the striker's condition during his pre-match press conference. "He's doing better, he's back from the hospital and is recovering. We're optimistic about having him against Salzburg," he said. Madrid face Salzburg in the final game of Group H on Thursday in Philadelphia. The 26-year-old missed the opening game with the same illness as Madrid were held 1-1 by Al-Hilal in Xabi Alonso's debut as coach. Madrid B-team player Gonzalo Garcia, 21, started in Mbappe's stead and opened the scoring for Real Madrid against their Saudi Arabian opponents. Alonso indicated that Gonzalo would again deputise for the Frenchman. "Gonzalo can do what he did the other day. He scored a goal and had three chances. Looking ahead, we'll see what happens. Having players with that sense of smell is very important. He did very well," he said. Mbappe finished as the European Golden Shoe winner in his first season at Real Madrid with 31 goals in La Liga and 43 across all competitions, but Los Blancos finished the season without a major trophy.