Vinicius extends Madrid forward contract to 2027
Vinicius Junior has penned a new Real Madrid contract until 2027.
The Brazilian winger, who has been at Real for five years, is one of the top talents in Spanish football having scored 45 goals in all competitions across the last two seasons.
However, the 23-year-old has been subjected to racist abuse on multiple occasions – the most high-profile incident coming in May when Real’s match at Valencia was stopped for 10 second-half minutes as Vinicius grabbed the referee and pointed towards fans who had abused him.
After the match, Real reported the abuse at Valencia as a “hate crime” while, Vinicius went on to claim that racism is “normal” in LaLiga and that “Spain is known as a country of racists” in Brazil.
READ ALSO The real GOAT: Messi and his earthquaking records
LaLiga president Javier Tebas also had to apologise to Vinicius after the Spanish top-flight chief claimed on social media that the forward was being “manipulated” after calling out the Valencia abuse.
The abuse has carried on into this season. Last week, a Sevilla supporter was ejected from their match with Real after allegedly directing racist abuse towards Vinicius, who praised the club for taking swift action. The Brazilian also highlighted how it was the 19th occasion he had been racially abused.
This week LaLiga announced it was investigating allegations of racist abuse directed at Vinicius during El Clasico on Saturday at Barcelona’s Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium.
The abuse is alleged to have happened when Vinicius was substituted at the end of the second half during Real’s 2-1 victory over their arch-rivals.
READ ALSO El Classico: A match Barca should have won says Xavi
“LaLiga has been working from the outset to identify the individuals involved in making racist insults and will file the relevant charges as is always the case,” the league said. “We are in direct contact with the police and FC Barcelona.
On Monday, Vinicius received the Socrates Award at the Ballon d’Or ceremony for his humanitarian work in 2023 – with the 23-year-old vowing to continue his battle against racism in his winning speech.