- Vinicius Jr. finished second in the Ballon d’or voting, but did not attend the ceremony
- Real Madrid players and coaches boycotted the glitzy event in Paris on Tuesday
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Vinicius Jr. believes his public fight against racism cost him the Ballon d’Or, a report claims.
The Brazilian missed out on the prestigious prize to Manchester City and Spanish midfielder Rodri, while Real Madrid teammate Jude Bellingham finished third.
The Spanish giants made headlines ahead of Tuesday’s ceremony in Paris when it was reported that players and coaches had decided to boycott the ceremony after learning that Vinicius Jr. would not take home top honors.
The 24-year-old took to social media after being confirmed as runner-up, writing on X: ‘I’ll do it ten times if I have to. They’re not ready for it.’
According to ReutersThis comment was a reference to his fight against racism in recent years.
Vinicius Jr. believes that his fight against racism is responsible for missing out on the Ballon d’Or
Manchester City and Spain star Rodri took home the prestigious award after a stunning season with Manchester City
‘The football world is not prepared to accept a player who fights against the system.’ A member of the Brazilian winger’s management staff is quoted by the newspaper.
Vinicius has been at the center of discussions about racism in football after being the target of abuse at least 16 times in recent years. Last month he suggested Spain should not host the 2030 World Cup unless action is taken to address the issue.
His comments were quickly dismissed by LaLiga president Javier Tebas, who branded them as ‘incoherent’.
“I think if you look closely, you will see that his statements were not entirely consistent with what he himself says in the interview.” He told Football España. ‘At the same time that he said the World Cup may need to be reconsidered, he also said that Spain is not a racist country.
“Let’s remove what is incoherent and keep what is coherent: that Spain is not a racist country, and on that I agree with Vinicius.”
The Brazilian winger has been the target of abuse at least 16 times in the past 18 months
The attacker burst into tears during a press conference earlier this year when discussing the subject.
“If the situation with racism in Spain does not improve before 2030, the World Cup would have to be moved to another location,” Vinicius said.
‘So I hope that Spain can evolve and understand how serious it is to insult someone because of the color of his skin, because if things don’t change in 2030, I think we have to change the venue because if the player doesn’t ‘doesn’t feel comfortable or safe playing in a country where he could face racism, it’s a bit complicated.’
Vinicius was a firm favorite to win the 2024 Ballon d’Or after his crucial contribution helped Madrid to a LaLiga-UEFA Champions League double.
He scored six goals and four assists in ten Champions League appearances and scored 20 goals in 26 La Liga games.
Before the event, RMC reported that Madrid president Florentino Perez was furious about the decision.
Journalist Jose Luis Sanchez claimed that a 50-man party was set to go, but they canceled after discovering that Vinicius would not win.
An example of this occurred when Madrid played Valencia, which resulted in three men receiving prison sentences
Sources at the club told ESPN Brazil that the insult was a “historic robbery.”
Marca also reported that Madrid insiders have angrily declared that “the Ballon d’Or no longer exists for us.”
A statement from Madrid to AFP said: ‘If the award criteria do not point to Vinicius as the winner, the same criteria should point to Carvajal as the winner.
‘Since this was not the case, it is clear that the Ballon d’Or-UEFA does not respect Real Madrid. And Real Madrid will not go where it is not respected.”
