By DPA
Lima : Peruvian authorities have closed a Lima nightclub owned by Chelsea striker Claudio Pizarro for 60 days on grounds of racial discrimination.
The authorities said Thursday that the Café del Mar would also have to pay a fine of some $78,000 since it had already been pulled up for a similar offence in 2006.
The Peruvian National Institute for the Defence of Consumers and Intellectual Property acted after a television report with hidden cameras showed clearly that mestizos – people of mixed race who are in a large majority in Peru – are not allowed into the Café del Mar, which only admits white people.
Pizarro has a majority stake at the nightclub, located in the Lima neighbourhood of Miraflores and with a generally wealthy clientele. The striker recently left Bayern Munich for Chelsea and is currently playing the Copa America with Peru in Venezuela.
However, it is not known to what extent Pizarro is involved in the management of the Café del Mar and whether he is aware of racist practices.
Unlike most Peruvian footballers, the striker comes from a wealthy family and is white with green eyes, but there have been no signs of a discriminatory attitude throughout his career.