The only thing missing was Javier Tebas. The fiery president of La Liga reacted in turn to the comments of the Brazilian Vinicius denouncing racism in Spain which, according to him, would gain ground every year, to the point of being able to call into question the organization of the World Cup in the country in 2030.
Tebas traveled to Beijing this week to sign a partnership with China for the broadcasting of the Spanish league. It is within the framework of this strategic agreement that aims to increase the presence of La Liga in the Chinese market that the president of the Spanish Football League spoke out on the Vinicius case.
“Spain is not a racist country”
“I think that if you look, you will see that his statements are not entirely consistent with what he himself says in the interview,” Javier Tebas said. “At the same time as he said that the World Cup should perhaps not be considered, he also said that Spain was not a racist country.” “Let’s remove what is inconsistent and stick with what is consistent: Spain is not a racist country, and I agree with Vinícius on that,” concluded the La Liga boss like a skilled politician.
Outcry in Spain
The Brazilian international’s statements have rightly shocked and provoked an outcry from a section of the Spanish political class, from the mayor of the city of Madrid, José Lui Martinez-Almeida, who ordered him to “immediately rectify his statements”, to the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, the latter believing that “respect for diversity is part of our DNA”.
In an interview with CNN, Vinicius suggested that Spain should be stripped of its co-hosting of the 2030 World Cup “if the situation of racism (in the country) does not change before 2030”. Vinicius has become, in spite of himself, an ambassador for the fight against racism in Spain, having himself been a victim of it on numerous occasions in football stadiums.
“Until 2030, we have a lot of room for improvement,” he said on that occasion. “So I hope that Spain will evolve and understand how serious it is to insult someone because of the colour of their skin, because if things don’t change by 2030, I think we’ll have to change location (for the World Cup), because if the player doesn’t feel comfortable and doesn’t feel safe playing in a country where he could be a victim of racism, it’s a bit complicated.”
- RMC Sport
