Rabat – FIFA President Gianni Infantino said in an interview with Skynews, that players who cover their mouths during confrontations could face a red card, saying referees should treat such situations seriously if discriminatory abuse is suspected.
“If a player covers his mouth and says something, and this has a racist consequence, then he has to be sent off, obviously. There must be a presumption that he has said something he shouldn’t have said, otherwise he wouldn’t have had to cover his mouth. There are situations which we did not foresee. Of course, when you deal with a disciplinary case, you have to analyse the situation, you have to have evidence, but we cannot just be satisfied with that going forward.”
This statement come after a controversial moment between Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni and Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr during the first leg of the Champions League playoffs in which Prestianni reportedly covered his mouth to hide a racial slur against Vinicius Jr, calling him a “monkey.”
The controversial incident
The situations unfolded after Vincious scored the opening goal and celebrated in front of Benfica fans. He was then booked for the celebration, which some Benfica supporters saw as provocative.
Angry fans threw bottles at him, and moments later, Prestianni confronted him, covering his mouth before speaking.
Immediately following, Vinicius Jr approached the match referee who initiated FIFA’s anti-racism three-step protocol and stopped play for a period of 10 minutes.
The Real Madrid forward expressed his frustration after the game on Instagram: “Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to put their shirts in their mouths to demonstrate how weak they are.”
League response: looming repercussions
The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) issued a provisional one-game ban following the incident, which is still under investigation. If found guilty Prestianni could face a minimum 10-game suspension for violating UEFA regulations on discriminatory behavior.
Following backlash to initial comments issued after the game, Benfica Head Coach Jose Mourinho issued a statement condemning discriminatory behavior, “completely, utterly opposed to any kind of discrimination or prejudice or ignorance or stupidity.”
The Portuguese coach stressed these statements by warning players they will not have a career with the club if found guilty, “I stand by my opinion. If the player is indeed guilty, I will never look at him the way I looked at him before, and with me, it’s over.”
Mourinho, still condemning discriminatory behavior, is still emphasizing the presumption of innocence during the investigation: “I am not a scholar, but I am not ignorant either. The presumption of innocence is a human right, isn’t it?”
