La Liga announced the issuance of a judicial ruling from the Madrid Regional Court convicting four individuals of committing hate crimes and threats against Brazilian Vinicius Junior, the star of Real Madrid, following the incident of the doll that was hung in January 2023.

The incident dates back to January 26 of last year, just before the match between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid in the Copa del Rey, where the accused hung a doll wearing a Vinicius Junior jersey on a bridge near Real Madrid's training ground, along with a banner that read 'Madrid hates Real Madrid.'

The court sentenced one of the defendants to 15 months in prison for committing a hate crime, and an additional 7 months for threats and posting images of the crime online, while the other three were each sentenced to 14 months in prison, divided between the crimes of hate and threats.

The court also decided to impose a financial fine of 1,084 euros on the first defendant, and 720 euros on each of the other three defendants, along with issuing restraining orders preventing them from approaching within 1,000 meters of Vinicius Junior, or any football stadium during matches, for four years after their prison term ends.

The penalties also include a ban on any form of communication with Vinicius, whether directly or indirectly, while the defendants signed a letter of apology addressed to the player, the Real Madrid club, La Liga, and the Spanish Football Federation, which contributed to the reduction of the penalties imposed on them.

Vinicius is currently preparing to participate with Real Madrid in the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup held in the United States, where the team will kick off its campaign against Al Hilal from Saudi Arabia next Wednesday in the first round of the group stage.