Why was Benfica vs Real Madrid stopped in the UEFA Champions League?

Real Madrid striker Vinícius Júnior accused an opponent of racially abusing him during Tuesday’s Champions League match against Benfica, halting the match for almost 10 minutes amid angry scenes at the Stadium of Light.

Madrid defender Trent Alexander-Arnold called the incident «a shame for football», while Benfica manager Jose Mourinho said Vinicius had incited his players and fans by the way he celebrated his goal in the 1-0 win for Madrid.

Vinícius had just curled a shot into the top corner when French referee François Letexier had to stop the match in the 52nd minute and made a signal with his arms to indicate that an accusation of racism had been made.

Benfica fans had reacted angrily when Vinicius celebrated his goal by dancing near the corner flag and throwing bottles and other objects at Madrid players. Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni then confronted Vinícius and said something while covering his mouth with his jersey.

The Brazilian striker then suddenly pointed at his Argentinian opponent and ran towards the referee.

Cameras recorded Vinícius telling Letexier that Prestianni called him ‘monkey’.

After the match, Vinícius posted a photo on Instagram of himself celebrating at Benfica’s corner flag.

He wrote: «Racists are, above all, cowards. They have to cover their mouths with their shirts to show how weak they are… Nothing that happened today is new to me in my life and in the lives of my family. I got a yellow card for celebrating a goal. I still don’t know why.»

When Vinícius voiced his complaint, the referee immediately stopped the match and crossed his arms above his head to start the anti-racism protocol.

Vinícius, a player of color, has been the victim of racist abuse repeatedly in Spain and went to the sidelines and sat in the dugout while play was stopped. Some of his teammates also started walking toward the sideline.

Mbappé and midfielder Aurélien Tchouaméni said the team considered leaving the field but ultimately decided to continue playing. Mbappé said he asked Vinicius to see what he wanted to do.

«What happened tonight is a shame for football,» Alexander-Arnold said after the match.

«It overshadowed the performance, especially after such a great goal. Vini has been subjected to this a few times throughout his career, and for this to happen tonight and ruin the night for us as a team is a shame. It has no place in football or in society. It’s disgusting.»

Twenty-year-old Prestianni watched from a distance as Vinícius spoke to the referee.

«The players who were around said that (Prestianni) said something ugly, that should not be said,» Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde said.

«If you cover your mouth to say something, it’s because you’re saying something that’s not nice. I’m proud of my teammates who defended Vini and of Vini.»

Benfica players said Prestianni told them he provoked Vinícius but never used racist insults.

«I asked him and he said it was a normal provocation between players during a match,» said Benfica midfielder Leandro Barreiro. “He said it wasn’t anything racist.”

Both coaches, Mourinho from Benfica and Álvaro Arbeloa from Madrid, spoke with Vinícius at the benches.

Mourinho said he did not want to say he believed one player over the other after speaking to both, but criticized Vinicius for celebrating near the fans.

“Unfortunately, he wasn’t just happy with that amazing goal,” Mourinho told Amazon Prime. “When you score a goal like that, you celebrate it in a respectful way.”

Mourinho said he told Vinícius that the greatest player in Benfica’s history – Eusébio – was black, but he seemed to wonder why the Real Madrid player is so often the target of racist abuse.

«Something is wrong because it happens in every stadium,» Mourinho said. «Something happened in the stadium where Vinicius played. Always.»

The referee seemed to show that he heard nothing and gestured that Prestianni had the shirt in front of his mouth.

The Argentinian player did not receive a yellow card and continued playing. He was substituted in the 81st and received applause from Benfica fans.

The match restarted in the 60th and Vinícius was loudly booed by the home crowd for the rest of the match.

He was hit by the bottle in the final minutes while standing on the sidelines in front of Benfica fans. The referee requested an announcement over the stadium loudspeakers warning fans not to throw objects on the field.

Mbappé, who defended Vinicius as Benfica players confronted his teammate, was also jeered by Benfica supporters.

Cameras also showed Mbappe apparently telling Prestianni that he was a racist, along with expletives.

“We cannot accept that a player who plays in Europe’s top competition behaves in this way,” Mbappé said. «He shouldn’t keep playing in the league. Let’s see what happens now.»

The Brazilian Football Federation showed solidarity with Vinícius, saying in an X-post that he was “not alone” and that “racism is a crime” and “has no place anywhere in football”. It called Vinicius’ decision to complain to the referee «an example of courage and dignity. We are proud of you.»

Mourinho, a former Madrid coach, was shown a red card in the 86th minute for complaining to the referee.

He said the referee did not give the Madrid players the yellow cards as he should have, and hinted that this was because they would miss the next match due to a card pile-up.

(with input from AP)

Published on February 18, 2026