La Liga has officially announced that they will take legal action and demand the immediate arrest of those responsible for the hate campaign led by a section of Atletico Madrid fans.
It must be noted that this campaign is aimed at racially insulting Vinicisu Jr. and other Real Madrid players during the Madrid derby.
Once again, controversy has surrounded the Madrid derby, this time due to an initiative that has surfaced on social media, encouraging Atletico fans to wear masks in order to insult players without being identified.
La Liga will take strict action
This movement has grown significantly over time, prompting La Liga to declare their intention to take strong legal action.
La Liga argues that encouraging people to wear masks with the intention of hiding their identity while committing such offences is a crime under the penal code.
La Liga has made it clear that anyone involved in expanding this movement “will be reported and arrested immediately.”
“La Liga would also like to highlight the civic and exemplary behaviour of the vast majority of fans, who have shown a firm commitment to the values of sport,” read a statement from La Liga (h/t SPORT).
“Many of them have actively collaborated in identifying the perpetrators of hate crimes in the past, as was the case with the regrettable incidents involving racist chants.”
The organisation insists that their actions are aimed at safeguarding the image of football in Spain, which has suffered enough from previous incidents of racism and other forms of discrimination.
However, La Liga also emphasised that the majority of Atletico Madrid fans are not involved in this movement.
They believe that it is a small group of individuals responsible for these actions, and the broader fan base should not be blamed or held accountable for the behaviour of a few.