Brazilian forward Richarlison has called for action after a banana was thrown at him during Brazil's 5-1 win over Tunisia on Tuesday night. The incident took place during celebrations after Richarlison scored to put Brazil ahead in the first half.
Response from Richarlison
Richarlison was interviewed after the match and has called for the authorities to identify who threw the banana and punish them, for there is no place for racism. If punished, Richarlison says, it will be an opportunity to deter fans from carrying out racial abuse. He says:
May this fan be identified and punished. You see what happened with Vinicius Jr recently, and now this, inside a stadium. May the authorities find and punish him. May this incident teach people not to do it.'
Similarly, the Tottenham striker has taken to Twitter to call for punishment for whoever carried out this racist attack. He condemns the football authorities for not taking these incidents seriously and advocates action in order for things to change. He says:
As long as they stay "blah blah blah" and don't punish, it will continue like this, happening every day and everywhere. No time bro!'
Enquanto ficarem de "blá blá blá" e não punirem, vai continuar assim, acontecendo todos os dias e por todos os cantos. Sem tempo, irmão! #racismonão pic.twitter.com/p8GqMPqUKa
— Richarlison Andrade (@richarlison97) September 28, 2022
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Brazilian Football Federation's response
In light of the event, the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) issued a statement via Twitter, with President Ednaldo Rodrigues condemning the racist attack. He says that the fight against racism 'is not a cause, but a fundamental battle for change' in order to rid this crime from sport and society. He, like Richarlison, calls for more severe punishments for those who chose to racially abuse players.
“O combate ao racismo não é uma causa, mas uma mudança fundamental para varrer esse tipo de crime do planeta. Eu insisto em dizer que as punições precisam ser mais severas”, finalizou.
— CBF Futebol (@CBF_Futebol) September 27, 2022
Support for Richarlison
Tuesday night's racist attack has been condemned globally, with support flooding in for Richarlison from individuals such as Rio Ferdinand and Thiago Silva. His club, Tottenham Hotspur have released the following statement:
We are disgusted by the racist abuse of Richarlison at last night’s game between Brazil and Tunisia. This has no place in football, or anywhere.
We stand with you, Richy 💙 pic.twitter.com/lXIkBv96si— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) September 28, 2022
A persistent problem
The striker is the second high-profile player to be victim to racial abuse in as many weeks, with Brazilian teammate Vinicus Jr on the receiving end during the Madrid derby. In the build up to the game, Atletico Madrid fans can be heard chanting 'Vincius is a monkey' as they walked to the stadium.
The week previous, Vinicius Jr's signature dance celebration angered some Mallorca players who accused him of showboating. On the controversial Spanish TV show Chiringuito, football agent Pedro Bravo accused Vinicius Jr of "monkeying around". The clip went viral and support came flooding in for Vinicius Jr, who then released a statement in which he said, 'Accept it, respect me, I’m not going to stop' in reference to his dance.
Koke - “There’ll be trouble if Vinicius dances at the Wanda Metropolitano”
Rodrygo - 🕺🏾🕺🏾🕺🏾
Brilliant 🤣pic.twitter.com/UhC7KrFmrL— FOOTY.COM (@footydotcom_) September 20, 2022
The racial attack on Richarlison on Tuesday night is unfortunately not an isolated incident. Racism continues to be a persistent problem in sport and in society. Those who carry out these sickening attacks must be punished severely and never be allowed in a stadium again.
We stand in solidarity with Richarlison and hope whoever carried out this act is identified and punished.
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