Benfica Respond as Vinicius Junior Reports Alleged Racist Abuse

Key Takeaways:

• The match on Tuesday night was paused for 10 minutes following Vinicius Junior’s claim that he was subjected to racist abuse by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni
• Benfica released a statement backing Prestianni and shared footage challenging Real Madrid players’ version of events
• Jose Mourinho criticised Vinicius Junior’s goal celebration and commented on the subsequent exchanges between players

Incident Halts Match as Vinicius Junior Raises Allegation

On Tuesday night, proceedings between Real Madrid and Benfica came to a standstill for 10 minutes after Vinicius Junior reported that he had been racially abused by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni. The altercation unfolded shortly after Vinicius struck the decisive goal in the second half, celebrating passionately in front of the home support before approaching the referee with his allegation. UEFA’s anti-racism protocol was then enacted as a result. Despite initially refusing to continue, Vinicius Junior returned to the pitch after persuasion from his teammates.

Juntos, ao teu lado. pic.twitter.com/RLxQ7Vm0W9

— SL Benfica (@SLBenfica) February 18, 2026

Benfica and Prestianni Deny Claims, Social Media Statement Released

Prestianni categorically denied the accusation, stating, “I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults to Vini Jr, who regrettably misunderstood what he thought he heard. I was never racist with anyone and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players.”

Following this, Benfica expressed solidarity with their winger by posting on X: “Together, by your side.” The club subsequently shared video footage of the incident and questioned the veracity of Real Madrid’s version of events, stating, “As the images demonstrate, given the distance, the Real Madrid players could not have heard what they claim to have heard.”

Vinicius Junior and Mourinho Weigh In

Vinicius Junior later issued a firm statement criticising both his abusers and UEFA’s handling of the situation, describing those responsible as ‘cowards’ and calling the governing body’s anti-racism measures a ‘poorly executed protocol’.

Benfica manager Jose Mourinho also offered his viewpoint, censuring Vinicius for what he saw as a disrespectful celebration in front of Benfica supporters. Asked by Amazon Prime whether Vinicius provoked the home fans and Benfica players, Mourinho said: “Yeah, I believe so. The words they exchange, Prestianni with Vinicius, I want to be independent. I don’t comment about it.”

Mourinho revealed that, during the interruption, he advised Vinicius to celebrate in a more conventional manner and pointed out to him that Benfica’s most historic figure, Eusebio, was black: “And then when he was arguing about racism, I told him the biggest person in the history of this club was black [Eusebio]. This club, the last thing it is is racist, so if in his mind it was something in relation to that, this is Benfica.”

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