A Champions League match between Real Madrid and Benfica escalated due to a serious racism accusation. Vinicius Jr., the Real Madrid forward, accused Benfica's Argentine striker Gianluca Prestianni of racist abuse. The incident occurred after the Brazilian, who had scored a goal, celebrated in front of the opposing fans. According to Vinicius, Prestianni allegedly called him a 'monkey' five times. This moment was caught on camera, with Prestianni seen pulling his shirt to his mouth while looking at Vinicius. The forward immediately reported it to the referee, François Letexier. However, after a Video Assistant Referee (VAR) review, no conclusive evidence of racist comments was found. As a result, the referee only issued a warning to the 20-year-old Argentine. The situation did not end there. Later in the same match, Vinicius's teammate, Kylian Mbappé, openly and repeatedly called Prestianni a 'fucking racist'. Midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni supported his teammate's account, explaining that Prestianni denies the accusation, claiming he used a different insult. Benfica manager José Mourinho also defended his player, stating he cannot say for sure that he believes only Prestianni.
