Together with Marega

During yesterday’s match against Vitória Sport Clube, Moussa Marega decided to abandon the pitch due to racist chants against him. It’s hard to grasp the feeling that we’re living in the XI century already, and events like this keep occurring throughout the world, whether be it in sports or society in general. The big question lies ahead though. Will the punishment be severe enough for the people who gladly took part in these calamitous acts? Apparently, the FC Porto player was a target of the Vitória fans since the warm up drills, as every time he touched the ball, a restricted group of people started to imitate monkey noises. Fed up with the situation, Marega went directly at the opposition fans the moment he scored a goal at the 60th minute, pointing to his skin as they threw chairs at the same time. But the worst inevitably happened. On minute 69th, he asked his coach to take him off, as he couldn’t handle it anymore. Safe to say, it was a very sad moment to witness, not only because of him, but for everyone involved, who looked particularly upset at the situation. Unfortunately, this is not the first time that these type of events happened in Portuguese soccer fields, and sadly, I fear this won’t be the last time, unless something drastic changes or serious measures are taken from the government and football federations.

Several clubs, both domestically and internationally, have already showed their support for Moussa Marega, stating that Racism has no place, be it on a football pitch or in any other place.

We strongly support and stand with Porto’s Moussa Marega who was subjected to racial chants today.



Again and again, enough is enough!#BorussiaVerbindet https://t.co/VC3d1NWeaZ — Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) February 16, 2020

O #SportingCP vem por este meio manifestar a sua solidariedade com o jogador Marega do FC Porto e repudiar qualquer acto de racismo e preconceito social.



Comunicado na íntegra ???? https://t.co/AcWElha4CU pic.twitter.com/xd5DHnmRyw — Sporting Clube de Portugal (@Sporting_CP) February 16, 2020

We will never cease to fight against prejudice in all its forms as we stand shoulder to shoulder with Moussa Marega and FC Porto. https://t.co/A55uKxYX5l — AC Milan (@acmilan) February 17, 2020

When are we going to end this?



We firmly stand with Moussa Marega and everyone who has suffered racism on or off a football pitch.#EnoughIsEnough https://t.co/DlMC9XLcYD — Real Betis Balompié (@RealBetis_en) February 17, 2020

Other Similar Cases in Portugal

Nélson Semedo v Vitória Sport Club

Nélson Semedo, a current right-back for FC Barcelona, used to play for SL Benfica a few seasons ago, and was a victim of the same racist chants, curiously in the stadium FC Porto played yesterday. However, the media in Portugal completely overlooked the incident, even criticizing Semedo for making a fuss out of the situation, stating that he needed to show some gratitude for the fans who get to see them play. A case of how this type of occurrences are handled in Portugal, where no one is to blame and everything seems perfect in the football world.

Hulk v Benfica

One of the most known videos in Portuguese football, is a footage where Hulk is being abused by Benfica fans, who seem to be chanting monkey sounds at him, while the winger turns the ball to his left-foot to shoot a missile that only stopped inside the net of Benfica’s goal. While the situation became viral, nothing happened after the game. One of the reasons the Marega situation could be different is that the player took a stance and decided to leave the pitch after being racially abused.

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