BRASILIA - Vinicius Junior’s Ballon d’Or snub was ‘influenced by racism’, commentators in Brazil have claimed, amid the fallout from one of the most controversial decisions in the award’s history.
Manchester City’s Rodri beat Vinicius to the prize at a ceremony on Monday but the reaction in Brazil has been fierce, with media claiming his stance in highlighting the racism he has faced played a part in the decision.
“We know that Vinicius Junior is a target of racism in Spanish football and other parts of Europe, and he actively fights against racism,” said Guga Chacra, a commentator for Brazilian TV news network Globo News. “This leads us to question whether the result that gave Rodri the win was influenced by prejudice and racism against Vinicius Junior.”
Gustavo Faldon, sports editor of Brazilian daily Estadao, said: “The [treatment of] Vinicius Junior was the biggest injustice in the history of Ballon d’Or.”
“The fact that he is Brazilian, plays for Real Madrid, and is a forward should have worked in his favour in the history of the award. It sounds like an injustice to me,” said Rodrigo Bueno, a sports commentator for ESPN Brasil.
Douglas Ceconello, a journalist for the Brazilian Globesport website, wrote: “The fact that Vini Junior wasn’t awarded the title of best player in the world at the Ballon d’Or is yet another way to try to penalise the Brazilian for his outspoken stance on racial issues, both on and off the field.”
‘You have to accept the result’
Pep Guardiola said Real Madrid must accept that Rodri landed the Ballon d’Or after the Spanish club’s mass boycott of the awards ceremony.
Guardiola stopped short of directly criticising the Spanish giants for not attending this week’s ceremony, after Vinicius Junior finished second to City’s Rodri in voting, but pointed out that City attended the event 12 months ago, even though they felt Erling Haaland should have won an award.
“Nothing to say. If they want to go, it’s fine. If they don’t, it’s fine as well. They want to congratulate, it’s fine. If they don’t want to congratulate, it’s fine as well,” said Guardiola.
“In the end, opinion is free. That’s what happens when people are allowed to vote. We have to accept the result, it’s simple.
“Sometimes you like it, sometimes you don’t like it, but it doesn’t matter.
“Manchester City, we are not here to judge what the other clubs do. For us, last season, Erling [Haaland] won the Treble, scored more than 50 goals and I said to him, ‘Just being there you have to be so happy’. If you are in the first two or three, it’s exceptional.
“It means you have done an incredible year and you have to be so satisfied. Last season, Erling should have won, but [Lionel] Messi won.
“In the end, it’s not important. What it is important is that you represent something in elite football because you, with your team-mates, have something, a really nice season.
“Should Vinicius have won? Maybe. But it’s 100 journalists all around the world [voting]. It’s all around the world, not just one country. There are different opinions, that’s why football is nice.”
Calderon: ‘This can harm our reputation’
Guardiola was understandably delighted that his midfield general, who is out for the remainder of the season with knee injury, became the first player in City history to win the accolade as the world’s best.
Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon said the club’s image could be tarnished by their refusal to attend the awards.
Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live, Calderon said: “I can’t say we need respect because we were awarded the title of the best club of the year. What more do you want to expect?
“If I had any hint or evidence that something wrong has been done then maybe I would have done the same but if not, of course I would have gone.
“We are the greatest club in the world – as recognised by anyone in the football world and we have to behave accordingly. This can harm our reputation, unfortunately.”
Voting for the award, handed out by France Football, is carried out by 100 journalists, with one selected from the top 100 countries in the Fifa men’s rankings.
France Football’s chief editor Vincent Garcia said he was ‘unpleasantly surprised’ by Madrid’s reaction, adding: “I don’t want to spend the night talking about it, I want to talk about our winner, Rodri.”