Four men between 24 and 26 years old, followers of Athletic from Madrid were arrested on October 14 and 15 for promoting and orchestrating the online campaign against Vinicius in the days before the last Madrid derby. Under the hashtag #metropolitanoconmascarillas, the red and white fans were encouraged to insult and harass the Real Madrid athlete in the match on September 29, especially with racist connotations, and also to go with their faces covered so as not to be able to be identified. The campaign had an impact of 1.7 billion views, 7,000 tweets and 56,000 interactions.
The tension and controversy that shook the last Madrid derby at the Civitas Metropolitano was preceded by this digital campaign, which may constitute a crime of incitement to hate. In this way, the radicals heated up the atmosphere that later erupted in the field, where several ultras threw objects onto the field, which caused the match to even have to be stopped for a few minutes. The investigation into what happened in the stadium was joined by investigations in the digital field in the previous days, which has resulted in the arrest of these four ultras in their twenties, after the police identified them as the authors of the campaign.
The investigation of the publications on different platforms began on October 1, after receiving three complaints from the Professional Soccer League regarding the existence of a possible crime of inciting hatred. Specifically, the entity presented a series of publications as the seed of the campaign that went viral in the days prior to the meeting. In the following days, the police traced the origin of those tweets and were able to identify four alleged perpetrators of the initiative. The agents warn that they may not be the last detainees in this operation. In a statement, the body highlights the enormous “social alarm” generated by the hashtag.
The hate campaign encouraged hiding one’s face in response to the arrest of several Valencia fans last year for insulting the Madrid striker. The identification of the faces of the fans who made those racist shouts at the player was possible thanks to the detailed analysis of the images captured inside the Mestalla, with which the promoters of the campaign sought to encourage those who went to the stadium to continue with the harassment. to Vinicius, but at the same time avoid the possible consequences. a month ago, A Palma court sentenced a man to one year in prison and removal from the Mallorca stadium for uttering humiliating comments to Vinicius and the Villarreal player, Samu Chukwueze, in separate matches in 2023.
In May of last year, four young people related to the Frente Atlético, the ultra group of the red and white team, were arrested for hanging an inflatable doll from a bridge near Valdebebas, where the Madrid sports city is located, with Vinicius’s shirt and the motto “Madrid hates Real”. That action was carried out in the days prior to the Copa del Rey match that was going to pit both teams against each other. Key to that investigation was a publication that the authors themselves had made on social media shortly before hanging the doll, in which she was seen leaning against a wall near a common meeting point for football radicals.
It’s been a while since Vinicius carries his fight against racism as his flagand has not hesitated to stop matches to point out fans who made humiliating comments related to the color of his skin. The response of the ultras is to intensify the attacks in this sense. And the police response is to arrest them, not only for crimes committed in the countryside, but also for those that take place on social networks.
The Prosecutor’s Office opens proceedings for the throwing of objects in the Metropolitan
On the other hand, what happened in the stadium during the aforementioned Madrid derby already had its consequences. The Competition Committee ordered the partial closure of the Civitas Metropolitano stadium for three games and urged Atlético to pay a fine of 45,000 euros for the throwing of objects that occurred from the stands where the Frente Atlético fans are located. Finally, Appeal allowed Atlético’s appeal and the sanction was a partial closure during a single match —It was fulfilled in the match against Leganés last weekend, in which the southern stands were deserted. There is another avenue open, that of the Anti-Violence Commission, which requests the total closure of the stadium for 15 days and a fine of 65,000 euros to the club. The Secretary of State for Security has to approve this proposal.
In addition, the Madrid Provincial Prosecutor’s Office has initiated criminal investigation proceedings this Thursday to clarify the events during that same soccer match at the Metropolitan stadium and especially the throwing of objects, most of them lighters, at Real Madrid goalkeeper, Thibaut Courtois. . As a first measure, the Madrid Prosecutor’s Office reports, it has requested the Provincial Information Brigade to “prepare a report on the events that occurred during the derby and, in addition, carry out an analysis of the images showing the people who could have throw objects onto the playing field to proceed with their identification.” We are awaiting these reports.
