In Barcelona, a record attendance for a women’s soccer game : NPR
(SOUNDBITE OF STADIUM Atmosphere)
KELSEY SNELL, HOST:
The crowds, the electrical power, a superior-stakes soccer recreation – it is referred to as El Clasico, when two dominant groups in Spain and all around the environment, Barcelona and Genuine Madrid, experience just about every other. Potentially today it ought to have been identified as La Clasica because it was the women’s teams that virtually crammed the 100,000-seat stadium for the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. It established a entire world report for a women’s match.
To get a sense of the day’s enjoyment, we spoke with reporter Alan Ruiz Terol as he was receiving prepared to attend the video game. So, Alan, hi. Describe for us the place you are, and what is the scene about you?
ALAN RUIZ TEROL: I have appear to one of the entry gates of Camp Nou. That is the Barcelona stadium. I think you can hear people today chanting…
SNELL: Of course.
TEROL: …All over me. Tickets bought out weeks back, so it really is likely to be packed. And the motive is that men and women know this is history in the making. It is the to start with time the Barcelona women’s crew plays in Camp Nou with general public. And with the rival becoming Real Madrid, it truly is even additional interesting.
SNELL: You know, of course soccer is big in Spain, but for those people who you should not rather know, can you give us a feeling of how dominant this sport is and how related the men’s Spanish soccer league seriously is?
TEROL: Oh, it really is truly massive. It can be called La Liga, or the league. And it’s a single of the most well-known athletics competitions in the entire world, the two most dominant teams staying Barcelona and True Madrid. Their rivalry is deeply rooted in Spanish record – political divisions as properly. So each individual time they deal with each and every other, it is really not only a soccer recreation, but also a social event. But up until finally incredibly not too long ago, though, this was only legitimate for men’s teams.
SNELL: Yeah. I wanted to ask you about that. Has soccer not been open to women of all ages, or is it just not that well-known?
TEROL: You can find a lot of machismo in soccer, and our fans will inform you that it truly is a man’s sport. That, of class, is not true. Women’s soccer has a prolonged record in Spain. But you wouldn’t say it was common, at minimum not right up until now. I desired to know why points are changing now, so I questioned Edurne Concejo, a sporting activities journalist who specializes in women’s soccer, and she reported that the most important cause is the rise of feminism.
SNELL: Now, Barcelona and Authentic Madrid are enormous clubs. And I’m pondering, when did they determine to spend in women’s soccer? And what is the situation like for smaller sized clubs?
TEROL: True Madrid, to begin with, did not even have a women’s team. They acquired an already existing squad two years back.
SNELL: Two yrs.
TEROL: Barcelona has experienced a women’s workforce for years, but they turned experienced not that extended in the past. That was was in 2015. So prior to that, players experienced other work opportunities, and they would practice in the evening well into the midnight. A whole lot has altered. Now Barcelona is obviously primary the way. They are the most dominant staff in Europe with unbelievable figures. Megan Rapinoe herself has called the staff the common-bearer of women’s soccer.
But neither Barcelona nor Actual Madrid are the norm in Spain. Couple clubs can offer you players very similar working conditions. And there are some excessive scenarios, also, Rayo Vallecano, the place players didn’t have a deal. They didn’t have professional medical staff members, and some had been dwelling in flats without energy since the club couldn’t spend their payments. So on paper, it is a experienced league, but there’s still a lengthy way to go.
SNELL: Wow. I realize you also visited observe by a smaller sized crew and talked to some of the players there. Young women of all ages aspiring to be qualified – what did they tell you?
TEROL: Indeed. I went to a education session of Club Esportiu Europa, a community club in Barcelona. I talked to some players in the girls’ group, so let us have a hear to Daniela Cervantes (ph) and Marina Lurenz (ph).
DANIELA CERVANTES: I commenced participating in when I was 8 several years previous, and I am 16 ideal now. And I experience like a ton has altered for the reason that now we have references. We truly feel like we have a upcoming in women’s soccer.
MARINA LURENZ: Now I am 15, and I commenced playing when I was 7. At first I only viewed men’s soccer. Now I get to see both equally guys and women of all ages.
SNELL: Okay, Alan, so your prediction for the match today?
TEROL: I am afraid that Barcelona is in a league of its very own. The staff has not shed a one video game this time, and they average much more than five objectives a match. So far, Barcelona has won all the women’s Clasicos, or Clasicas, so a defeat these days would appear as a shock. But, of course, everything is attainable as soon as the ball starts rolling.
SNELL: That was Alan Ruiz Terol speaking to us appropriate right before El Clasico’s soccer match for women. And in circumstance you might be wanting to know, Barcelona won the video game 5 goals to 2 and superior to the semi-finals of the UEFA Champions League.
Copyright © 2022 NPR. All legal rights reserved. Visit our web page phrases of use and permissions web pages at www.npr.org for even more information and facts.
NPR transcripts are established on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may well not be in its final kind and may possibly be current or revised in the long run. Accuracy and availability may possibly differ. The authoritative document of NPR’s programming is the audio file.
