Who is Gianluca Prestianni? The Benfica Player Accused of Racially Abusing Vinicius Jr

Controversy marred Real Madrid’s Champions League battle with Benfica on Tuesday.

Gianluca Prestianni finds himself at the center of a scandal. | Nicolò Campo/LightRocket/Getty Images

Benfica forward Gianluca Prestianni has dominated the headlines after allegedly racially abusing Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior during Tuesday’s Champions League playoff first leg.

The match, which was staged at Estádio da Luz in Lisbon and won 1–0 by Madrid, was temporarily halted during the second half after Vinicius reported being the subject of a racial slur to referee François Letexier. The alleged incident occurred in the aftermath of the Brazilian’s goal celebrations shortly after the break and was corroborated by Kylian Mbappé, who insisted that he heard Prestianni “say that Vinicius is a monkey, five times.”

Prestianni has since denied the allegations on social media and has been supported in his rebuttal of the claims by his manager José Mourinho, who remarkably blamed Vinicius for what happened.

UEFA have launched an official investigation into the incident but it’s unclear how long it will take for them to properly conduct such a process. In the meantime, Prestianni continues to come under the microscope.

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Who Is Gianluca Prestianni?

Prestianni covered his mouth when speaking to Vinicius. | Valter Gouveia/Sports Press Photo/Getty Images

Diminutive winger Prestianni only arrived in European football two years ago. The Argentine was born and raised in Buenos Aires and joined Vélez Sarsfield in his homeland as a youngster, proceeding to make his senior debut for the club during a Copa Libertadores match in May 2022.

The following year was Prestianni’s breakout, with the talented 20-year-old making 33 appearances for Vélez Sarsfield and scoring three times. Naturally, as any talented South American does early in their career, he attracted attention from Europe.

Benfica swooped in and captured his signature for approximately €11 million ($11.9 million). After initially turning out for their B team, the forward was promoted to the senior side and has since made 45 appearances for the club—34 of which have come during the current campaign. Prestianni has become a regular starter since mid-December.

Despite also being able to represent Italy at international level, Prestianni chose Argentina. Having competed for the U17s and U20s previously, he made his senior debut in November 2025 during La Albiceleste’s friendly victory over Angola—albeit his cameo was incredibly brief.

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Previous Scandal Resurfaces

Ay dios este video de Prestianni en 2022. Lo van a meter preso. pic.twitter.com/WcPYFB0hFq

— santi. (@santivs87) February 18, 2026

Since the accusations put against him regarding Vinicius, a previous controversy has resurfaced on social media. A video taken in 2022 during a match between the youth teams of Argentina and Brazil shows Prestianni in conflict with one of his opponents after the full-time whistle.

The Argentine is seen running towards one of Brazil’s players before launching several punches, sparking a mass brawl between the two teams on the field. Prestianni was eventually restrained by one of his teammates.

Not for the first time, the Benfica attacker finds himself at the center of controversy, with the prospect of a 10-match suspension hanging over him should he be found guilty of racial abuse.

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Benfica Legend Turns on Gianluca Prestianni

Benfica icon Luisão has spoken on the incident. | Diogo Cardoso/DeFodi Images/Getty Images

Luisão, the Brazilian center back who represented Benfica for 15 years as a player, has heavily criticised Prestianni following the alleged abuse, insisting that the Argentine was lying during his statement of defence on social media.

“This jersey is too big, I love Benfica, it’s my second skin. You have to be worthy to wear the sacred mantle. That text is even worse because it's a lie ... football is won with grit, with fighting spirit. It was racist, yes, and I’m ashamed of it,” said Luisão.

The 44-cap Brazil international is not the only person to condemn Prestianni’s alleged actions, with Vinicius’s Madrid teammates also vocal in their anger. Trent Alexander-Arnold labelled it a “disgrace to football” and Mbappé insisted that Prestianni “doesn’t deserve to play anymore in the Champions League.”

Vinicius himself took to social media after the game, writing: “Racists are, above all, cowards. They need to put their shirts over their mouths to show how weak they are.

“But they have, alongside them, the protection of others who, in theory, have an obligation to punish. Nothing that happened today is new in my life or in my family’s life.”

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