Who is Gianluca Prestianni? Vinicius Jr racism claim against Benfica winger halts Champions League clash

In a terrible episode, Real Madrid’s Champions League knockout play-off match against Benfica was briefly stopped after Vinícius Jr reported a racist comment made toward him during the game. The incident happened shortly after Vinicius Jr gave Real Madrid a 1–0 lead. As he celebrated, Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni approached him and appeared to say something while covering his mouth with his shirt. Vinicius immediately reacted and refused to continue playing.

The Real Madrid forward ran to referee François Letexier, who quickly stopped the match. The referee crossed his arms in front of his face, a signal used to activate FIFA’s anti-racism protocol. The game was paused for around 10 minutes as players and officials discussed the situation on the pitch.

Prestianni is a young Argentine winger who joined Benfica after impressing with Vélez Sarsfield in Argentina. He has been earning more first-team minutes this season.

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"Racists are cowards," Vinicius posted on Instagram story after the game. "They need to put their shirt over their mouths to show how weak they are."

Vinicius also received a yellow card after his goal. He had celebrated with a dance by the corner flag and was then confronted by several Benfica players. Benfica coach José Mourinho was seen speaking with a visibly upset Vinicius during the stoppage. A member of Benfica’s coaching staff was shown a red card, and Mourinho was later sent off for a separate incident.

Play eventually resumed, and Real Madrid held on to win 1-0. There was another brief delay late in stoppage time when objects were thrown from the crowd as Vinicius prepared to take a corner.

Vinicius has spoken openly about racist abuse in the past and has called for stronger action to protect players.

According to ESPN, Kylian Mbappe said, after the match, that Prestianni had racially abused Vinicius multiple times and added that the Argentine didn’t deserve to play in the Champions League again.