ISTANBUL
La Liga condemned racist remarks from the Real Madrid stands directed towards Lamine Yamal during El Clasico and announced on Sunday that it would file a formal complaint with the National Police Information Brigade’s Hate Crimes Section.
During the El Clasico against Barcelona on Saturday, Real Madrid fans hurled racist insults at Yamal.
“In light of the events that took place during the match between Real Madrid CF and FC Barcelona, where intolerable racist behavior was observed, LALIGA will immediately report the racist insults and gestures received by FC Barcelona players to the Hate Crimes Section of the National Police Information Brigade, as well as informing the Coordinating Prosecutor of the Hate Crimes and Discrimination Unit of the State Attorney General’s Office,” La Liga said in a statement on Sunday.
“There is no place for this scourge in sport,” it added.
The incident occurred during the Real Madrid-Barcelona match, where Yamal scored Barcelona’s third goal.
Barcelona won the El Clasico 4-0 against Real Madrid at Santiago Bernabeu. Robert Lewandowski scored twice while Yamal and Raphinha added one on the road.
Real Madrid launch investigation
Real Madrid launched an investigation into a reported racist insult at Yamal.
“Real Madrid has opened an investigation in order to locate and identify the perpetrators of these deplorable and despicable insults so that the appropriate disciplinary and judicial measures can be taken,” Real Madrid said in a separate statement.
Lamine Yamal, a 17-year-old Spanish footballer born to a Moroccan father and an Equatorial Guinean mother, was subjected to racist insults by a group in the stadium during his celebration and corner kicks after scoring his team’s third goal.
One of the most targeted players in the recent rise in racism in the Spanish top tier was Brazilian Vinicius Junior, who plays for Real Madrid.
In response to incidents of racism directed towards Vinicius Junior, the Spanish courts sentenced four people to prison, fines, and sports bans in rulings made in June.
Ahead of the Atletico Madrid vs. Real Madrid match on Sep.29, four people were detained for initiating a hateful, racist campaign targeting Junior on social media platforms.
