Why Mbappe's testimony is enough to “condemn” Prestianni » The precedent that gives Madrid hope
Article by Maria Olteanu – Published Wednesday, February 18, 2026 11:14 p.m. / Updated Wednesday, February 18, 2026 11:14 p.m.
There was unprecedented scandal on Tuesday nightat Benfica – Real Madrid, in the first leg of the play-off for the quarterfinals of the Champions League. After Vinicius' goal, the anti-racism protocol was activated. Benfica issued a statement commenting that Real Madrid's players could not hear Prestianni, but Mbappe's testimony overturns the plans.
Vinicius is in the spotlight in European football following his statements made during the match between real madrid and Benfica TO Lisbonwhere the “galacticos” won 1-0 thanks to a goal scored by him, obtaining an advantage for qualification in the round of 16 of the competition.
The Brazilian attacking midfielder of the “Galacticos” claimed that Prestianni called him a “monkey”, an incident that led to the interruption of the game and the activation of the anti-racism protocol.
Benfica's Argentinian forward denied the allegations and stated on social media that although he lifted his shirt and spoke to him, he did not use racist slurs.
Thus is his word Vinicius against his word Prestiansbut, at the same time, teammates of the first, including Mbappethey publicly stated that they heard the Prestians calling him “monkey”. Moreover, the French later called him a “damned racist”.
How Mbappe's statements can change the Vincius-Prestianni case
Now, Mbappe could lead to severe punishment for Prestiansbecause UEFA, in similar cases, often takes into account the testimonies of footballers. There is also a similar case in the past, a precedent that could give Madrid people hope, according to sportal.gr.
In 2021, Ondrej Kudela from Slavia Prague was suspended for 10 matches after Glen Kamara from Rangers she claimed that he cursed her with racist terms in her ear, and the two almost got into a fight.
Bongani Zunguwho was then his teammate at Rangerstestified that he heard the incident, and without further evidence, the Czech was sanctioned.
Maybe this is one of the reasons why Benfica announced Wednesday that his players real madrid he couldn't have heard what he said Prestians his Vinicius because of the noise from the stadium, but his testimony Mbappe it could be decisive for the Argentinian striker.
