Valencia, the La Liga team, have filed a lawsuit against Netflix, accusing the company of defamation through a new documentary about the Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior.
The issue with the court order is only one particular instance in Vini Jr. when the director shows the recording of the game in which Real Madrid lost 1–0 at Mestalla on May 21, 2023.
In the video, it is alleged that the fans of the home team abused the Brazilian winger with racist chants of “mono” (“monkey”). Contrarily, Valencia assert that the supporters were chanting “tonto” (“silly”), and the subtitles are defamatory and offensive to the club.
The club was definitely on the verge of taking legal action if Netflix and the production company Conspiração Filmes did not comply with their demand and change the subtitles, but in the absence of amendments, Valencia have now taken legal action in court to claim monetary relief and have the subtitles rectified.
The issue here is another dimension of the ongoing discussion regarding the existence of racism in Spanish football. In particular, last year, three fans of Valencia were found guilty of racist abuse towards Vinícius during the same match. They received sentences of eight months in jail as well as two years of stadium ban each.
Vinícius who has always speaks out against racism, said that the decision as “historic” for black players in Spain. The 25-year-old is still yet responded to Valencia’s lawsuit.
