Real Madrid have launched an investigation after a supporter allegedly performed a Nazi salute before the club’s Champions League win against Benfica on Wednesday.
Prior to the kick-off at the Bernabeu, a fan appeared to make the fascist gesture as the television cameras panned around the 83,000-seater stadium.
The fan was identified by security staff moments later and ejected from the ground.
Real beat Portuguese side Benfica 2-1 in the second leg of their knockout round play-off tie to progress 3-1 on aggregate to the last 16 of the Champions League.
In a statement, the Spanish club said they have asked its disciplinary committee “to initiate an immediate expulsion procedure” for the fan.
“Real Madrid condemns this type of gesture and expression that incites violence and hatred in sports and society,” it added.
Real Madrid’s win against Benfica to reach the Champions League last 16 was a “victory for everyone who stands against racism”, midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni says.
Vinicius Jr alleged he was racially abused by Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni during the first leg, in which the Real forward scored the game’s only goal.
Prestianni – who has denied racially abusing the Brazilian – was subsequently handed a one-match ban, meaning he missed Wednesday’s return leg.
Support was shown for Vinicius by the home fans as a banner with the words “no to racism” in Spanish was displayed in the stands before kick-off.
Vinicius was again on the scoresheet, netting Real Madrid’s second goal as the Spanish side came from 1-0 down on the night to win 2-1 and book their place in the next round with a 3-1 aggregate victory.
“I think there are more important things than this match, than football,” said Tchouameni, who scored Real’s first-half equaliser.
“Vinicius keeps his confidence and he keeps focused on what he needs to do.
“I think they made the right decision by not letting the boy [Prestianni] play this match.
“Like I said, there are things more important than football and this is a victory for all of us.”
Real Madrid and England defender Trent Alexander-Arnold said Vinicius had been his usual self before the fixture, “very chilled” and “very relaxed”.
“He didn’t need to score to send a message or show his mentality,” said the former Liverpool player.
“He doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone because he’s shown time and time again how good he is.
“He steps up when we need him the most. He knows his quality and what he brings to the team.”
Who: Real Madrid vs Benfica What: Champions League playoff, second leg Where: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid, Spain When: Wednesday at 9pm (20:00 GMT) How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT in advance of our live text commentary stream.
Real Madrid carry a slender 1-0 lead over Benfica going into the second leg of a Champions League playoff tie that has been overshadowed by allegations of racism.
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UEFA has suspended Benfica midfielder Gianluca Prestianni from the second leg on Wednesday after he was accused of racially abusing Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr, who scored the only goal in the first game in Lisbon last week.
Meanwhile, Benfica coach Jose Mourinho, who is also suspended for the second leg, has come under fire for criticising Vinicius for his effusive goal celebration.
So the Portuguese side will be expecting an especially hostile welcome at the Bernabeu as they try to overturn their one-goal deficit and reach the last 16.
Vinicius Jr confronts Prestianni during the first leg at the Estadio Da Luz in Lisbon on February 17, 2026 [Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images]
Courtois ‘disappointed’ in Mourinho’s response
Vinicius wrote that “racists are above all cowards” on social media after the game while Madrid striker Kylian Mbappe backed his teammate and said he had heard Prestianni calling the winger a “monkey”.
The 20-year-old Benfica midfielder, who hid his mouth with his shirt during the confrontation with Vinicius, insisted he did not racially abuse the Brazilian forward after his stunning goal at the Estadio da Luz.
Prestianni could miss at least 10 games if European football’s governing body finds he racially abused Vinicius.
Mourinho waded into the controversy by saying Vinicius’s goal celebration was disrespectful and insisting Benfica was not a racist club because their biggest icon, Eusebio, was Black.
Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois said he disagreed with Mourinho’s words.
“At the end of the day, Mourinho is Mourinho. As a coach, you’re always, I think, going to defend your club and what your player has told you,” Courtois said.
“The only thing that disappoints me a bit is using Vini’s celebration. I don’t think Vini did anything wrong there,” he added.
“I don’t think we can justify alleged racism because of a celebration.”
Mourinho’s Bernabeu homecoming upended by suspension
Benfica’s boss has not set foot in the Santiago Bernabeu since leaving Real Madrid in 2013, and he cannot sit in the dugout for the playoff’s second leg after being sent off during his team’s 1-0 first-leg defeat in Lisbon last week for making vituperative complaints about the officials from the touchline.
Mourinho said referee Francois Letexier was avoiding booking Madrid players who were at risk of suspension for the second leg.
“I’ve had my butt on the bench for 1,400 games and [I could see that] he knew perfectly well who he could book and who he couldn’t,” Mourinho complained bitterly.
“I [won’t be] sitting on the bench. I can’t go to the dressing room. I can’t communicate with the team,” he added. “It’s hard for me, but my teammates and my assistants are there. They’ll do their job.”
Benfica also said Mourinho was not going to attend the pregame news conference on Tuesday and his assistant would take over.
Mourinho is shown a red card by Letexier during the first leg [Angel Martinez/Getty Images]
Arbeloa says UEFA have chance for ‘turning point’ against racism
Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa called on UEFA to make their fight against racism into more than just a slogan after the alleged abuse of Vinicius Jr.
“We have a great opportunity to mark a turning point in the fight against racism,” Arbeloa told reporters on Tuesday.
“UEFA, which has always been and has led this fight against racism, now has the chance not to leave it at just a slogan, at just a nice banner before matches, and I hope that they seize this opportunity.”
Arbeloa said he believed Vinicius will thrive on Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabeu as the record 15-time champions bid to reach the last 16.
“Vinicius Jr has always shown a lot of bravery and a lot of character,” Arbeloa said. “That is always his response. It always has been, and I think it always will be.
“He is a fighter, and I’m sure tomorrow he will go out to fight and have a great game and keep showing he’s one of the best players on the planet.”
Head-to-head
This is only the sixth meeting between two of the biggest clubs from Spain and Portugal. Benfica have won three of the games while Real Madrid have won two.
The two clubs also faced each other in a league stage match in January when Mourinho’s team stunned his former club in a 4-2 win that allowed Benfica to qualify and prevented Madrid from automatically reaching the round of 16.
How many times have Madrid and Benfica won the Champions League?
Madrid are the record winners of Europe’s premier club competition with 15 titles to their name, the last coming in 2024.
Benfica have lifted the trophy on two occasions, and both of those came in consecutive years.
In what was regarded as Benfica’s golden era, Portuguese legend Eusebio helped the team to wins against Barcelona in 1961 and Real Madrid in 1962.
A hat-trick from Hungary’s finest export, Ferenc Puskas, could not save Madrid as Benfica earned a 5-3 win that included a double from Eusebio.
Vinicius Jr scores a brilliant goal in the first leg against Benfica [Pedro Nunes/Reuters]
Real Madrid’s team news
Jude Bellingham, Dani Ceballos and Eder Militao have all been ruled out through injuries while centre back Dean Huijsen, who missed the 2-1 defeat at Osasuna over the weekend with a muscular problem, is a major doubt.
Winger Rodrygo will be unavailable due to a suspension but would anyway be a doubt as he struggles to recover from a hamstring issue.
Raul Asencio is available again after returning from suspension.
Vinicius Jr will be looking to score for the fifth game in a row as he is set to start up front alongside Mbappe.
Vinicius Jr scored a sublime second-half winner as Real Madrid beat Benfica 1-0 in their Champions League playoff first leg, a night overshadowed by the Brazilian accusing Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of directing a racist slur at him.
The alleged incident occurred moments after Vinicius had curled Real ahead, five minutes into the second half at the Estadio da Luz on Tuesday, before referee Francois Letexier halted the match for 11 minutes under FIFA’s anti-racism protocol.
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Television pictures showed the Argentinian winger covering his mouth with his shirt before making a comment that Vinicius and nearby teammates interpreted as a racial slur against the 25-year-old, who has repeatedly suffered racism in Spain during matches.
“It is unbelievable that, with dozens of cameras in the stadium, that none could have caught [Prestianni’s] racial slur, but if you cover your mouth to say something, that says a lot,” Real captain Federico Valverde told Movistar Plus.
“According to my teammates who were close, they heard something very ugly. Many people have been fighting against racism in football; Vinicius is one of them. I’m proud of him and his great game.”
The Associated Press news agency reported that television cameras picked up Vinicius Junior telling the referee that Prestianni had called him a “monkey”.
Benfica began the game on the front foot, but the visitors gradually assumed control while the hosts appeared content to counterattack, with goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois producing a stunning one-handed save to keep out a 25th-minute strike from Fredrik Aursnes.
Real finished the first half strongly, and only goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin’s brilliance kept the score goalless at the break as he produced stunning saves to deny Kylian Mbappe and Arda Guler.
The breakthrough came five minutes after the restart. Mbappe burst forward and fed Vinicius on the left. The Brazilian cut diagonally towards the box, shifted inside and unleashed an unstoppable curling shot into the far top corner.
Vinicius celebrated by dancing with the corner flag and was booked by Letexier for excessive celebration.
As the forward argued with the referee, he became involved in a heated exchange with Prestianni, with Vinicius and several teammates suddenly running towards the referee.
Letexier crossed his arms in front of his face to activate FIFA’s protocol and stopped the match. Real’s players threatened to leave the pitch as tensions flared, before play eventually resumed 11 minutes later.
The atmosphere turned hostile, with Vinicius loudly booed whenever he touched the ball, and the broadcast camera appeared to show an outraged Mbappe calling Prestianni “a bloody racist” to his face several times after the game resumed.
Tempers flared again in the 85th minute, when Vinicius fouled Richard Rios. Benfica manager Jose Mourinho stormed towards the fourth official, demanding a second booking for the Brazilian, but was himself cautioned for his protests.
An incensed Mourinho continued remonstrating, and was promptly shown a second yellow card.
Mourinho is shown a red card after directing some choice words at the officials [Angel Martinez/Getty Images]
Benfica pushed late on, but managed only three shots on target as Real secured a slender advantage to take back to Madrid for the return leg.
Real Madrid coach Alvaro Arbeloa decried the alleged abuse against Vinicius Junior.
“I think everyone can see what happened with Prestianni,” he said.
Arbeloa added, “We have to fight against this type of attitude”, and, “If we don’t respect each other, then it is a problem”.
Madrid right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold told Amazon Prime that what allegedly happened during the match was a “disgrace to football” and overshadowed the performance and an amazing goal.
“Vini has been subject to this a few times throughout his career,” he said. “To ruin a night like this for our team is a disgrace. There is no place for it in football or society. It is disgusting.”
Mourinho criticised Vinicius Junior’s celebration and defended the club – if not Prestianni – against allegations of racism.
“Words were exchanged. I want to be independent. I don’t want to say I believe in Prestianni or believe in Vinicius,” he said.
“I told [Vinicius], ‘When you score a goal like that, you just celebrate in a respectful way’. When he was arguing about racism, I told him the biggest person [Eusebio] in the history of this club was Black. This club, the last thing that it is, is racist.”
Galatasaray thrash Juve 5-2
Elsewhere on Tuesday, Dutch midfielder Noa Lang scored a brace as Galatasaray thumped Juventus 5-2 in a pulsating contest in Istanbul in the first leg of a Champions League playoff.
In a nerve-shredding atmosphere, Luciano Spalletti’s Juventus actually led 2-1 at half-time after Teun Koopmeiners replied to Brazilian midfielder Gabriel Sara’s opener with a brace of his own.
But Colombian full-back Juan Cabal was dismissed for two bookings in a calamitous second half for the Italian side, as Lang’s brace and goals from Davinson Sanchez and Sacha Boey sunk Juventus.
Meanwhile, Champions League holders Paris Saint Germain overcame a horror start and a two-goal deficit to beat 10-man Monaco 3-2 away in the first leg of their knockout round playoff tie.
Desire Doue came off the bench to engineer an impressive turnaround for PSG, who conceded a goal in the opening minute and were 2-0 down after 18 minutes as Folarin Balogun grabbed a double for the hosts.
The 20-year-old Doue replaced Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, who went off injured after 27 minutes, and proved decisive for the visitors as he struck two superb goals, as well as setting one up for Achraf Hakimi.
In Germany, striker Serhou Guirassy scored one goal and created another as hosts Borussia Dortmund claimed a 2-0 victory over Italian visitors Atalanta in the first leg of their Champions League playoff tie on Tuesday.
