Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni Denies Racism Abuse Allegations, Admits To 'Anti Gay' Remarks Against Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr. - Report

Benfica's Gianluca Prestianni has reportedly submitted evidence declining the racism allegations made against him in the Champions League playoff clash against Real Madrid. The incident occurred after Vinicius Jr. scored the winning goal for his side in the 50th minute, and the two players were seen exchanging, with Gianluca Prestianni pulling a shirt over his mouth before Vini Jr. was seen running off to the referee.

Following Vinicius Jr.'s complaint of being allegedly racially abused, the referee initiated the racism protocol set by UEFA immediately, halting the match for nearly 10 minutes. The incident sparked widespread interest and criticism, with athletes like Lewis Hamilton voicing their support for Vinicius Jr.

After the match, Gianluca Prestianni took to social media to deny the allegations, while Vinicius Jr. called him a coward, as he had to hide behind his shirt to say what he wanted to say to the Real Madrid player. According to a report by ESPN, Gianluca Prestianni has denied the racial abuse claims but has confessed to making 'anti-gay' remarks about the Real Madrid player after UEFA decided to review this incident.

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Gianluca Prestianni Reportedly Admitted To Making Anti Gay Remarks Against Vinicius Jr.

According to ESPN, the Argentine player has given evidence stating that he called Vinicius the anti-gay slur "m------" in Spanish, rather than "mono," which is Spanish for monkey. Notably, immediately after the game, Real Madrid player Aurélien Tchouaméni had told the Spanish media that the Benfica midfielder had provided this explanation after being confronted about the incident.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid have reportedly submitted a dossier of "all available evidence" to UEFA as part of the inquiry, with players like Kylian Mbappe publicly supporting his teammate.

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Racial Abuse And Anti-Gay Remarks Fall Under Same Punishment Framework

For the unversed, UEFA's disciplinary regulations state that the punishment framework for racial abuse and anti-gay remarks falls under the same. The regulation states, "Any entity or person subject to these regulations who insults the human dignity of a person or group of persons on whatever grounds, including skin colour, race, religion, ethnic origin, gender or sexual orientation, incurs a suspension lasting at least ten matches or a specified period of time, or any other appropriate sanction."