Football, whiteness and ethnic-racial relationships

Vini Jr.’s case

Abstract

This article addresses the racism suffered by the Brazilian Real Madrid player, Vini Jr, in May 2023, which mobilized a wide media discussion. The objective of the work is to understand the conditions of possibility of Vini Jr.'s reaction, by paralyzing the game and pointing out one of the authors of the racist acts, remaining, after the episode, firm in denouncing La Liga as silent and colluding with racism. . It is understood that this reaction, unusual in the face of so many episodes of racism in “European” football, is the effect of new configurations in power relations that are strained by the reemergence of the extreme right, the outbreak of anti-racist movements and the unsubmissive posture of sportsmen. blacks in several countries. When analyzing the conditions of possibility of Vini Jr's attitude, we use the theory of performativity, from posts on Twitter, to locate speeches that are, at the same time, actions, that is, that produce what they say. Within the framework of an exploratory research, the legal-political possibility of disseminating anti-racist clauses in the contracts of black players, members of ethnic minorities and/or immigrants was formulated, which would produce recognition and reparation for these groups that even sustain the quality of the “European” football.