UEFA on Monday suspended midfielder Gialuca Prestianni from Benfica’s Champions League play-off second leg against Real Madrid this week after he was accused of racially abusing Vinicius Junior.
“Following the appointment of a UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector (EDI) to investigate allegations of discriminatory behaviour during the UEFA Champions League 2025/2026 Knock-out Play-off match between SL Benfica and Real Madrid CF on 17 February 2026, and upon request of the EDI with an interim report, the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) today decided to provisionally suspend Mr. Gianluca Prestianni for the next (1) UEFA club competition match for which he would otherwise be eligible for the prima facie violation of Article 14 of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations (DR) related to a discriminatory behaviour.
“This is without prejudice to any ruling that the UEFA disciplinary bodies may subsequently make following the conclusion of the ongoing investigation and its respective submission to the UEFA disciplinary bodies,” A UEFA statement read.
The decision follows allegations of discriminatory behaviour during the first-leg encounter on February 17, 2026, in Lisbon, where Real Madrid secured a 1-0 victory.
The incident occurred after Vinícius Júnior scored, leading to a heated confrontation in which the Brazilian forward accused Argentine Prestianni of directing a racist slur at him, specifically the term “mono” (Spanish for “monkey”), while covering his mouth with his shirt.
The referee invoked UEFA’s anti-racism protocol, resulting in a roughly 10-minute pause in play as the matter was addressed on the field.
