FIFA president Infantino wants ‘zero tolerance’ approach to racism

Gianni Infantino has called for referees at all levels to stop matches if incidents of racism occur. The FIFA president has met Real Madrid and Brazil forward Vinícius Júnior to discuss the issue after the player spoke out due to suffering abuse.

Infantino labelled the racists “criminals”, adding that football authorities had to “shoulder responsibility”.

Real Madrid filed a complaint with the Spanish State Attorney General’s Office in May, claiming the racist abuse suffered by Vinícius constituted a hate crime after he was targeted during the La Liga match with Valencia at Mestalla.

Full screen

“There is no football if there is racism”

“It’s very important not just to talk about racism and discrimination, but to take action in a decisive and convincing manner – zero tolerance,” Infantino said after the meeting with the Brazil squad ahead of their game against Guinea in Barcelona on Saturday.

“There is no football if there is racism – so let’s stop the games. The referees have this opportunity in FIFA competitions as we have this process for stopping the game, and actions have to be taken at every level, at national level as well.

“It’s a football-related problem and we mustn’t look for excuses like: ‘It’s society’s problem, therefore, it’s fine in football.’ In the world of football, we must act in a very forceful way.

“We want to identify racists in stadiums and across social media. They are criminals. They have to be banned from stadiums across the globe.

“The authorities need to take these people to court and we will say this to all of them. Racism is a crime.”