Vinicius Junior is one of the main revelations of Brazilian soccer in recent times. The striker started at Brazilian club Flamengo and played a few games in Brazil until he was signed by Real Madrid of Spain. At the age of 21, he was valued by Football Benchmark, a soccer analysis company, as the most valuable player in South America, for US$138 million. This year, Vinícius Júnior led a movement against racism in Spanish and world soccer, after fans of the Valencia club made racist attacks on him during a match between the two clubs. Brazil’s President Lula himself and other personalities expressed their solidarity to the player. The Brazilian government called the attacks on the star player “unacceptable” in a statement and announced that it will take action with sports authorities and sponsors.
