Vinicius Jr: Committee slaps Valencia with ₦22m fine and partial stadium closure

The competition committee has concluded on punishment for Valencia after their fans racially abused Vinicius Junior.  

The Real Madrid star was subjected to racial abuse in their defeat to Los Che on Sunday, and following a media storm that largely criticised the league's seeming inaction, they have announced Valencia's punishment. 

A committee composed of representatives from LaLiga, the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), and the Ministry of Culture has punished the two-time Champions League finalists for the actions of their fans. 

They were handed a ₦22 million and will have to close a section of their stadium, the Mario Kempes Stand, for their next five home games. 

This punishment comes after intense media scrutiny and criticism of Spanish football's stance against racism. The league has responded to calls for sporting sanctions, as opposed to their previous policy of reporting racist abuse to Spain's judiciary. 

Meanwhile, the Spanish police have arrested four suspects alleged to have hung an effigy of Vinicius ahead of the Madrid derby in January. 

The arrest follows the storm that hit Spanish football in the past few days due to the Brazilian international suffering racist insults in Real Madrid's 1-0 defeat to Valencia at the Mestalla on Sunday.