{"id":13197,"date":"2026-02-23T18:19:51","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T18:19:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=13197"},"modified":"2026-02-23T18:19:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T18:19:51","slug":"benficas-prestianni-gets-provisional-one-match-ban-for-vinicius-incident-football-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/?p=13197","title":{"rendered":"Benfica\u2019s Prestianni gets provisional one-match ban for Vinicius incident | Football News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<p class=\"article__subhead\"><em>UEFA announces suspension of Gianluca Prestianni after accusations he racially abused Real Madrid\u2019s Vinicius Jr.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div><button class=\"article-listen-container\" aria-labelledby=\"listen-text listen-duration\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-button\"><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"article-listen-container__text\" data-testid=\"listen-to-article-text\">Listen to this article<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">\u00a0|\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"article-listen-container__duration\">3 mins<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/button><button tabindex=\"0\" class=\"tooltip-accessible_trigger\"><svg class=\"icon icon--info icon--main-grey-dark icon--16 listen-to-article-tooltip__icon\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\" role=\"presentation\"><title>info<\/title><path class=\"icon-main-color\" d=\"M12 0a12 12 0 1 0 0 24 12 12 0 0 0 0-24Zm-.226 3.225a2.039 2.039 0 0 1 2.155 1.924v.193a1.998 1.998 0 0 1-2.155 2.149 2.029 2.029 0 0 1-2.146-2.15 2.039 2.039 0 0 1 1.955-2.122h.193l-.002.006Zm3.227 15.525a.75.75 0 0 1-.752.75H9.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.75h.748V12h-.75a.75.75 0 0 1-.75-.75v-1.5a.75.75 0 0 1 .752-.751h3a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.752v6.75h.75a.75.75 0 0 1 .75.749L15 18.75Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"article-dates\">\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Published On 23 Feb 2026<\/span><span aria-hidden=\"true\">23 Feb 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"rich-share\" data-testid=\"rich-share\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"rich-share__button-wrapper\"><button class=\"rich-share__button row\" aria-expanded=\"false\"><\/p>\n<p>Click here to share on social media<\/p>\n<p><svg class=\"icon icon--share2 icon--primary icon--16 \" viewbox=\"0 0 20 16\" version=\"1.1\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><title>share2<\/title><path fill=\"#000\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\" d=\"M11.688 9.048c-.659 0-1.252.282-1.673.733l-4.92-2.45c.016-.115.028-.232.028-.352 0-.117-.011-.23-.027-.343l4.913-2.423a2.285 2.285 0 0 0 1.68.739C12.964 4.952 14 3.899 14 2.6 14 1.302 12.965.25 11.688.25S9.377 1.302 9.377 2.601c0 .117.01.23.027.343L4.49 5.367a2.285 2.285 0 0 0-1.68-.739C1.536 4.628.5 5.681.5 6.979c0 1.299 1.035 2.35 2.312 2.35.659 0 1.252-.281 1.673-.731l4.92 2.45a2.357 2.357 0 0 0-.029.351c0 1.299 1.035 2.351 2.312 2.351S14 12.698 14 11.399s-1.035-2.35-2.312-2.35Z\" clip-rule=\"evenodd\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"rich-share__social-text\">Share<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"true\">\n<p>The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) says it has provisionally suspended Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni for one match after accusations he racially abused Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr.<\/p>\n<p>The decision, announced on Monday, means that Prestianni will miss Wednesday\u2019s second leg of the Champions League playoff between Real and Benfica at the Bernabeu. Madrid won the first match in Lisbon on Tuesday with Vinicius scoring a second-half winner for a 1-0 victory.<\/p>\n<section class=\"more-on\">\n<h2 class=\"more-on__heading\">Recommended Stories<!-- --> <\/h2>\n<p><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">list of 3 items<\/span><span class=\"screen-reader-text\">end of list<\/span><\/section>\n<p>The game was halted for nearly 10 minutes after the Brazil forward scored and celebrated by the Benfica corner flag, upsetting local fans and players. After being confronted by Prestianni, Vinicius accused the Argentinian player of calling him \u201cmonkey\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Prestianni has denied racially insulting Vinicius.<\/p>\n<p>The antiracism protocol was activated but no further action was taken during the match as there was no evidence against Prestianni, who covered his mouth with his shirt while talking to Vinicius. The Madrid forward was shown a yellow card after his celebration.<\/p>\n<p>UEFA said the decision from its Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body is related to discriminatory behaviour.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is without prejudice to any ruling that the UEFA disciplinary bodies may subsequently make following the conclusion of the ongoing investigation and its respective submission to the UEFA disciplinary bodies,\u201d it said in a statement.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4321934\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-4321934\" style=\"width:770px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-arc-image-770 wp-image-4321934\" src=\"https:\/\/www.aljazeera.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/GettyImages-2262180061-1771405820.jpg?w=770&amp;resize=770%2C653&amp;quality=80\" alt=\"Gianluca Prestianni of Benfica speaks towards Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid during the UEFA Champions League 2025\/26 League Knockout Play-off First Leg match\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-4321934\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Prestianni, far right, covers his mouth during the incident, after which Vinicius Jr said Prestianni a racially abused him [File: Angel Martinez\/Getty Images]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>FIFA President Gianni Infantino said after the match that he was \u201cshocked and saddened to see the incident of alleged racism\u201d and praised the referee for activating the antiracism protocol.<\/p>\n<p>Benfica showed support for Prestianni with the Portuguese club accusing Madrid players who said they heard the insult of being too far away. Benfica later released a statement saying it welcomed UEFA\u2019s investigation and it \u201cfully supports and believes the version presented\u201d by Prestianni, \u201cwhose conduct while with the club has always been guided by respect\u201d towards everyone.<\/p>\n<p>Benfica fans had reacted angrily to Vinicius celebrating his 50th-minute goal by dancing at the corner flag. They threw bottles and other objects towards the Madrid players. Prestianni then confronted Vinicius and said something while covering his mouth with his jersey.<\/p>\n<p>Prestianni insisted that Vinicius misunderstood what was said while Benfica players after the match reportedly said the Argentinian provoked the Brazil forward but never racially insulted him.<\/p>\n<p>Kylian Mbappe was among the Madrid players who strongly defended Vinicius and posted on X: \u201cDance, Vini, and please never stop. They will never tell us what we have to do or not.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The France star also said Prestianni should never play in the Champions League again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>UEFA announces suspension of Gianluca Prestianni after accusations he racially abused Real Madrid\u2019s Vinicius Jr. Listen to this article\u00a0|\u00a03 mins info Published On 23 Feb 202623 Feb 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) says it has provisionally suspended Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni for one [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13198,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13197","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13197","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13197"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13197\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13197"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13197"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/inernews.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13197"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}