In a tense Copa del Rey semifinal first leg at the Reale Arena, Real Madrid’s match against Real Sociedad was temporarily halted due to hostile chants directed at defender Raul Asencio.
Referee stops Real Madrid match after “Die, Asencio” chants erupt in stadium
The incident unfolded just before halftime when sections of the home crowd chanted “Asencio, die,” prompting Madrid captain Vinícius Júnior to alert referee Jose María Sanchez Martínez.
Adhering to Spain’s anti-hate protocol, the referee paused the game, and a stadium announcement declared: “No to racist, xenophobic or intolerant chants.
Support the team, respecting the opponent.” Despite the interruption, the match resumed shortly after.
Real Madrid’s head coach, Carlo Ancelotti, decided to substitute Asencio at halftime, bringing on Lucas Vazquez.
Ancelotti explained, “Vinicius spoke to the referee, the referee stopped the game and applied the protocol.
After that, I took [Asencio] off. The player had two things: He was affected by [the chants], and he had a yellow card. So I took him off.”
The chants are believed to be linked to an ongoing legal investigation involving Asencio.
Earlier this month, a court in the Canary Islands ruled that an investigation into Asencio’s alleged role in the distribution of a sexually explicit video involving a minor will continue.
Asencio is alleged to have shared a sexual video recorded by three other former Madrid academy players of an encounter with two girls, one of whom was a minor, in June 2023.
Real Sociedad’s captain, Mikel Oyarzabal, condemned the behavior, stating,
“We don’t like it. I think there are other ways of condemning what happened, or acts that may have been committed, but this isn’t the right way to do it.”
Head coach Imanol Alguacil added, “If that happened — because I didn’t hear it — I condemn it. We don’t like that happening in our stadium or any stadium. We condemn those chants; it can’t happen.”
Despite the off-field distractions, Real Madrid secured a 1-0 victory, with Brazilian forward Endrick scoring the decisive goal in the 19th minute.
The win provides Los Blancos with a crucial advantage heading into the second leg of the semifinal at the Santiago Bernabeu.
This incident highlights ongoing challenges in Spanish football regarding fan behavior and the effectiveness of protocols designed to combat hate speech in stadiums.
