Yesterday, Vinícius Júnior was once again the victim of racism during a match against S.L. Benfica. And the worst part isn’t that it happened — the worst part is how unsurprising it has become.
If this happened in a company, there would be firings within 24 hours. Imagine an employee insulted because of their skin color in front of 20 colleagues. No press release needed. No “protocol.” No corporate video. The company would act immediately: dismissals, sanctions, mandatory training, internal audits. And if it didn’t, it would make headlines and lose reputation, clients, and contracts.
So why is football different? Why can a full stadium reproduce behavior that would be unacceptable in any workplace… and nothing happens? Football is afraid to hit where it hurts.
Real sanctions mean closing stadiums, deducting points, suspending matches.
But that means economic loss. And in 2026, money still seems to be worth more than human dignity.
That’s why we keep seeing empty campaigns, hashtags and speeches that change nothing. The industry gets outraged… but without real consequences.
And responsibility always falls on the victim.
Vinicius gets questioned for his attitude, gestures, reactions. In any company, it would be unthinkable to ask the person being racially abused to “be more patient” or “behave better.” But in football, some still believe racism is fought through the self-control of the one who suffers it… instead of through sanctions for the one who commits it.