The Parliament of Portugal rejected on Friday (June 12, 2026) a bill that would toughen penalties for crimes of racism. The proposal had been forwarded after a case involving the Brazilian football player not country.
Center-right parties that support the government and the right-wing party voted against the text Enough of the opposition. Center-left and left-wing parties voted in favor.
The project had been proposed by a group of 80 Brazilian civil society organizations through a Citizen Legislative Initiative tool.
The initiative has existed since December 2024. At the beginning of 2026, 4 thousand signatures were missing to forward the proposal. After the the group achieved another 8,000 and exceeded the goal. The project was submitted to the Legislative Assembly with the support of 35,605 people.
Article 240 of the Portuguese Penal Code determines imprisonment of 6 months to 5 years for those convicted of racism, but the offense must be committed in public or in the media. Other types of discriminatory behavior are left out, as in the case of the Brazilian player.
The project rejected on Friday (June 12) proposed increasing the maximum penalty to 8 years in prison and removing the requirement for public disclosure of the offense.
CASE VINI JR.
On February 17, 2026, the Real Madrid striker claimed to have been the target of racist insults during a match against Benfica in the Champions League.
The episode took place in the 2nd half of the game played in Portugal. After scoring the winning goal for Real Madrid 1-0, Vini Jr. got involved in an argument with Argentine Prestianni, from Benfica. According to reports, the Portuguese team player covered his mouth to insult the Brazilian.
The game was stopped for around 10 minutes while the referee assessed the situation. FIFA’s anti-racism protocol establishes the possibility of temporary interruption or even cancellation of the match in the event of a repeat offense. After the stoppage, the confrontation was resumed.
