During the first leg of the 2025–26 UEFA Champions League knockout phase playoffs, the spotlight shifted squarely to the controversy surrounding the clash between Benfica and Real Madrid. An incident involving Vinicius Jr. and Gianluca Prestianni — centered on alleged racist remarks made by the Argentine player — sparked a firestorm that has escalated significantly over the past several hours.
Benfica have publicly supported Prestianni, defending their player and even posting a clip of the incident aiming to prove his innocence. Prestianni also broke his silence on the racism allegations, denying Madrid’s version of the story.
UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, is currently overseeing a step-by-step review of the procedures to be followed in connection with the incident, which led Vinicius to leave the field and stop the match with the activation of the racism protocol. In the past few hours, an official statement addressing the situation has been released:
“The official reports from the matches played last night are currently being reviewed. Where matter are reported, proceedings are opened and should they lead to disciplinary sanctions being imposed, they are announced on the UEFA disciplinary website. We have no further information to provide you or any further comment to make on this matter at this stage.”
According to a report from Sky Sports News via its X account, UEFA has appointed an Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector who will investigate the racism allegations raised by Real Madrid and Vinicius Jr. against Gianluca Prestianni. According to Aurelien Tchouameni, Prestianni allegedly called Vinicius “m*nkey,” a remark that Kylian Mbappe also claimed to hear.
The Benfica-Real Madrid rematch will be played on high alert
While the spotlight shifted due to an off-field controversy, the match itself carried major implications for both clubs’ ambitions. The ball kept rolling, and Real Madrid ultimately secured a crucial road victory to boost their chances moving forward.
As both sides await a final ruling — particularly regarding what could happen with Gianluca Prestianni — the squad led by Jose Mourinho (who addressed Vinicius’ allegations by questioning his goal celebration) will travel to Madrid next week looking to overturn the result. Benfica fell 1–0 at home and will need to flip the scoreline on the road if they hope to keep their Champions League campaign alive.