Rafael Ramos (Corinthians), arrested for racial insult to a rival

the portuguese side Raphael Ramos was arrested on Saturday night -and released after paying bail- after being accused of racial slur by a rival in the match in which his club, Corinthians, current leaders of the League in Brazil, drew 2-2 at the International in Porto Alegre.

bouquets He was detained by Police at the specialized police station at the Beira-Río stadium in Porto Alegre after he was accused by midfielder Edenilson, an Internacional player, of uttering an insult with racist connotations during their argument on the field in the minute 30 of the second half.

According to Edenilson, who justified his decision on social networks, he explained that he only went to the police because he was waiting for an apology that he did not receive and said he had no doubt about what he heard, Ramos told him “ foda-se macaco “(fuck you monkey) while talking.

The right-back argued with his defense that the midfielder was certainly confused by his Portuguese accent from Portugal, which is somewhat different to the Portuguese from Brazil, and what he said was “foda-se, caralho” (fuck you), an insult common in your country but without racist connotations.

“My conscience is clear. It’s all just misunderstanding. He made a mistake. I talked to him, I explained to him and we even shook hands,” Ramos said, indicating that Edenilson chose to file a complaint out of “fear.” To pass a complaint. liar “.

The Corinthians, who came out in defense of its player and linked the incident to a dispute, explained in a statement that the arrest occurred because Brazilian law provides for it in this type of case and that the payment of bail – the club assumes – does not constitute acknowledgment of guilt.

The Sao Paulo club reaffirmed in its note that, “in accordance with its 111-year history, it rejects and does not condone racism”; that Ramos gave a different version to Edenilson and he even went to the Internacional dressing room to try to clarify the misunderstanding and deny any kind of racial insult.

“But, as a result of the complaint made by the Internacional player, the law requires that the case be treated as gross followed by arrest. The payment of bail does not imply a confession of guilt and allows the player to defend himself at liberty during the investigation “, explained the head of the Brazilian League.

The International, in a statement also, lamented a new case of racism in football. “It is unacceptable that cases of this kind are still happening in 2022. There is no room for racism in our society. The People’s Club reiterates that it rejects any act of discrimination and it supports its athlete,” he said. of note.

Porto Alegre Civil Police commissioner Carlo Vitarelli, responsible for the arrest and for the investigation, explained that the player was arrested inside the stadium and released after paying bail of 10,000 reais (about 2,000 dollars), allowing him to defend himself. to freedom during the process.

After the alleged insult and the departure of the ball from the field, Edenilson confronted the referee of the match, Braulio da Silva Machado, to report what happened.

The game was delayed for five minutes as the players argued with each other and gave their different versions to the referee, who cited the complaint in the official match report.

The incident came days after Conmebol (South American Football Confederation) announced changes to its regulations to tighten the penalties and fines provided for racism cases after class episodes were recorded in several Copa matches. Libertadores and Copa Libertadores. la Sudamericana, mostly against Brazilian fans.