Prestianni suspended over Vinícius racism allegations: how many games will he miss?
UEFA has announced that Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni has been banned from this week’s Champions League second leg against Real Madrid.
Benfica winger Gianluca Prestianni will not play against Real Madrid this midweek, when Los Blancos host As Águias in the second leg of the Champions League knockout-round playoffs.
UEFA’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body has opted to “provisionally suspend” Prestianni as he remains under investigation for allegedly directing racist abuse at Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior during last week’s first leg in Lisbon.
UEFA’s Prestianni statement in full:
UEFA announced the one‑match provisional suspension on Monday, saying in a statement: “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.”
Prestianni may still face an additional suspension and potential fines, as the investigation remains open. UEFA made that clear in its communiqué. “This [provisional ban] 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,” Monday’s statement concluded.
Prestianni accused of “monkey” racist slur
In last Tuesday’s clash at Benfica’s Estádio Da Luz, Vinícius accused Prestianni of calling him a “monkey” in the aftermath of the Brazilian’s 50th minute goal for Madrid. Vinícius reported the alleged slur to match referee François Letexier, who immediately triggered the anti‑racism protocol, halting the game for several minutes.
Madrid later submitted evidence to UEFA, which last Wednesday announced a probe into the incident.
Prestianni has denied racially abusing Vinícius, but the Madrid player’s teammate, Kylian Mbappé, told reporters postgame in Lisbon: “[Prestianni] pulled up his shirt [to cover his mouth] and said ‘Vinícius is a monkey’ five times. I heard it, there are players from Benfica that heard it too.”
When do Benfica and Real Madrid play again?
Following Madrid’s 1-0 win at Da Luz, the 15-time European champions host Benfica in the return on Wednesday, Feb. 25, with kickoff at the Bernabéu scheduled for 3:00 p.m. ET/12 noon PT.
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