Vinicius Junior scored one of Brazil’s goals in a 4-1 victory over Guinea in an international friendly on the same night that the Brazilian national team played in an all-black kit as a statement against racism in the sport of football.
This season, the 22-year-old Real Madrid attacker has been the target of repeated racist abuse, and Brazil felt that the friendly was a good chance to fight back. The match was staged in Espanyol’s stadium, which is located close Barcelona, and Brazil thought that the friendly was a good opportunity to strike back.
For the first half of the game, Brazil took a bold stand against racism by donning an all-black strip instead of their traditional yellow and green jerseys. This was done as a statement against the country’s history of racism.
The Brazilian Football Confederation was the organization that was the driving force behind the gesture, which was backed with the motto “Com racismo nao tem jogo” (With racism, there is no game).
In the 88th minute, Vinicius himself, who was by this time dressed in Brazil’s typical colors, converted a penalty kick to get his name on the scoresheet. He was wearing the number 10 shirt.
Joelinton, a forward for Newcastle, was in a good position to touch in the first goal on the goal line at the 27 minute mark, and Rodrygo, a forward for Newcastle, curled in the second goal two minutes later.
Eder Militao restored the two-goal advantage shortly after the restart by rising high to meet a cross at the far post. The goal was scored immediately after the restart by Stuttgart striker Serhou Guirassy, who brought a goal back for Stuttgart with a close range header on minute 35.
Casemiro, a midfielder for Manchester United, made a late tackle on Francois Kamano that went against the spirit of the party that was going on inside the stadium, but he was only given a yellow card for his trouble.
Late in the match, the substitute player for Brazil, Malcom, was pulled down within the penalty area. Vinicius was encouraged to take the spot, and he did so by striking the ball firmly and lowly enough to beat the goalkeeper, Ibrahim Kone, who had dove in the appropriate direction.
In the wake of widespread anger at the treatment of Vinicius Junior, the Spanish and Brazilian football federations have unveiled their idea for an anti-racism friendly match to be played at the Santiago Bernabeu in March 2024. The match is scheduled to take place at that venue.