Brazil state of Rio de Janeiro approves "Vini Jr Law" to eradicate racsim

Vinicius Junior has often been victim of racism in Spanish football

On Wednesday, the government of Rio de Janeiro renamed anti-racism legislation after Real Madrid player Vinicius Jr. Under the rule, racist behaviour will result in the cancellation or suspension of sporting events.

In May, when Real faced Valencia, supporters racially taunted Brazilian international Vinicius. This was the 22-year-old's tenth such occurrence that LaLiga submitted to authorities the previous year.

The player's reaction to the event at Valencia's Mestalla Stadium, where the match was stopped for several minutes as he shouted at people racially insulting him in the fans, according to the local press, was cited as the inspiration for the law.

“Today is a very special day and I hope my family is very proud,” said Vinicius during a ceremony at the Maracana Stadium, where he made his senior debut for Flamengo in 2017. I am very young and I didn’t expect that I would be receiving this tribute.”

“I didn’t expect so many awards and to receive all this affection at the Maracana, where I attended and played so many Flamengo matches.” “In addition to all his football career achievements, Vinicius has also become a symbol of the fight against racism.”

The Brazilian state legislature of Rio de Janeiro unanimously authorised the "Vini Jr law" in June, which also mandates mandatory educational programmes and a procedure for handling accusations of racism.

Vinicius also got honours from Rio's legislative body and the mayor, and his likeness was placed on the Walk of Fame at the arena alongside other legendary Brazilians like Pele, Garrincha, and Ronaldo.

Vinicius was given the responsibility by FIFA president Gianni Infantino in June to serve as the head of a special anti-racism commission made up of athletes. This group will recommend harsher sanctions for discriminatory conduct in sports.