Vinicius Jr. States Critics Persist in Attempts to ‘Cancel’ and ‘Belittle’ Him After Fifa Best Award Win

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr, the first Brazilian to be named the Fifa Best men’s winner since the awards’ inception in 2016, stated that his detractors “continue to try to cancel me, to belittle me” following his receipt of a significant individual football award. The Brazil national team member was recognized as the men’s player of the year at the Fifa Best Awards on Tuesday. This recognition occurred seven weeks after he did not win the Ballon d’Or. The 24-year-old player has experienced repeated racial abuse during matches in Spain over the last two seasons. Despite this, Vinicius achieved a personal best of 24 goals in the 2023-24 season, contributing to Real’s victories in La Liga and the Champions League. On Instagram, he posted, “I came, I saw, I won.” He further added, “Today I write this for that boy who saw so many idols lift that trophy…your time has come.” He continued, “That is, my time has come. The time to state that, yes, I am the best player in the world and I fought a lot to get here.” Vinicius and his club chose not to attend the Ballon d’Or ceremony in October. Real stated that the club “does not go where it is not respected”. His team-mates Jude Bellingham and Dani Carvajal also received nominations for the men’s award, which ultimately went to Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri. Vinicius, who transferred to Real from Flamengo in 2018, further commented: “They tried and continue to try to cancel me, to belittle me. But they’re not able to.” He continued, “Nobody is going to tell me for whom I can fight, or how I should behave. When I was in [home town] Sao Goncalo, the system didn’t work for me. I was almost swallowed up.” He concluded, “I won for me, for my family. With a lot of support along the way: Flamengo, Real Madrid, the Brazilian national team, hundreds of my fellow players during those years…the people who share with me my daily routine, who admire me…the best player in the world.” Real coach Carlo Ancelotti and forward Kylian Mbappe both secured individual accolades at the Ballon d’Or ceremony, though neither attended to accept their respective awards. Following Rodri’s announcement as the men’s winner, Vinicius posted on X: “They’re not ready.” The Ballon d’Or and Fifa Best Awards represent the two most esteemed honors in football. Vinicius attended in Doha to receive his inaugural Fifa prize. The award, recognizing performance from August 2023 to August 2024, was determined by a combination of public votes, one journalist from each nation, and the captain and manager of each national team. Each of these voting segments contributed 25% to the final decision. Real Madrid was already situated in Qatar for the Fifa Intercontinental Cup final on Wednesday, where they were scheduled to face Mexican club Pachuca at Lusail Stadium.