Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni has been given a six-match ban by Uefa for discriminatory conduct towards Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior during a Champions League match in February, with three matches suspended for a period of two years.
The suspension comes after Prestianni racially abused Vinícius Júnior during the first leg of the Champions League playoff.
Vinícius accused Prestianni of subjecting him to racist abuse at the Estádio da Luz, with Kylian Mbappé alleging he had heard Prestianni call Vinícius a “monkey” five times.
The game was delayed for 10 minutes after the Brazilian reported the alleged incident to the referee François Letexier, who activated the anti‑racism protocol but who had not heard anything himself. Prestianni had covered his mouth with his shirt when he addressed Vinícius.
Prestianni previously received a one‑game ban is a provisional while the investigation was ongoing.
