Referee Iosu Galech Apezteguia halted the Elche v Espanyol game following a reported instance of racism.
Sunday’s La Liga fixture between Elche and Espanyol was temporarily suspended for three minutes under UEFA’s established racism protocol, according to the official match report.
Referee Iosu Galech Apezteguia documented that the match was paused after Espanyol’s Omar El Hilali alleged that Elche’s Rafa Mir directed a racist remark towards him, as reported by Spanish football analyst Guillem Balague., external
The incident reportedly transpired in the 78th minute of the game.
UEFA’s protocol dictates that a referee will halt play if a player reports alleged racism, subsequently relaying the details to the fourth official.
Espanyol later shared an image of El Hilali, the 22-year-old Spain-born Morocco international, on social media, accompanied by the message “with you.”
La Liga issued a statement: “We condemn any act of racism. On the field, and off it, there is no place for those who harbor hate.”
Elche stated, external that while they condemn any discriminatory act, they urged caution in the “absence of evidence.”
Mir subsequently scored a penalty in the 90th minute, resulting in a 2-2 draw.
Vinicius: Eight years at Real Madrid, 20 cases of alleged racist abuse
The racism protocol was recently invoked in a Champions League match when Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr. reported to the referee that he had been racially abused by Benfica midfielder Gianluca Prestianni during the first leg of their play-off encounter.
Prestianni, an Argentina international, has denied the allegation. He missed the second leg after receiving a one-match ban from UEFA, pending the outcome of a full investigation by an ethics and disciplinary inspector.
Further sanctions could be imposed upon the investigation’s completion.
Vinicius has been the target of numerous incidents of racist abuse during matches in Spain.
He was targeted during Real Madrid’s match against Real Valladolid in September 2022. Consequently, in May 2023, five individuals received suspended prison sentences for racially abusing the Brazil international in what was described as an “unprecedented” ruling in Spain.
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