UEFA suspends Prestianni after Vinicius Jr racism allegation sparks Champions League chaos

Christopher Sededzi Kwame 16:08 - 23 February 2026

Gianluca Prestianni | Getty Images

UEFA has provisionally suspended Benfica forward Gianluca Prestianni, ruling him out of the second leg of the club’s Champions League play-off against Real Madrid CF.

The first leg of the knockout play-off tie, played on Tuesday, February 17, was temporarily halted for approximately 10 minutes after Vinícius Júnior reported alleged racist abuse to referee François Letexier.

Following a discussion with the Brazilian forward, Letexier made the crossed-arms gesture — UEFA’s protocol signal for racist abuse — prompting Vinicius to leave the pitch and sit in the dugout at Estádio da Luz, where he initially refused to continue playing.

MUST READ: Cartel Chaos in Mexico: Match suspended as players flee after gunfire ahead of World Cup

The incident reportedly followed an exchange between Vinicius and Prestianni, after which the Madrid winger approached the referee to raise his complaint.

He wrote on Instagram.

After the match, Vinicius issued a statement condemning the alleged abuse.

Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to put their shirts in their mouths to show how weak they are

But they have the protection of others who, theoretically, have an obligation to punish them. Nothing that happened today is new in my life or in my team's life.

In a post shared in the early hours of Wednesday, Prestianni denied directing any racist remark at the Brazilian.

"I want to clarify that at no time did I direct racist insults to Vini Jr, who regrettably misunderstood what he thought he heard," Prestianni wrote. "I was never racist with anyone, and I regret the threats I received from Real Madrid players."

UEFA has since confirmed that Prestianni will be suspended for Benfica’s upcoming fixture against Real Madrid on Wednesday, February 25.

In an official statement, the governing body said,

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 discriminatory behaviour.

READ MORE: Sadio Mane: From Bambali to football immortality, the rise of Senegal’s humble superstar

This 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.

The statement added:

Further information about this matter will be made available in due course.

According to Sky News reporter Rob Harris, Prestianni could face a minimum 10-match suspension from UEFA competitions if found guilty following the conclusion of the investigation.

Update Me