Watch: The fan-led league with inclusion at its heart

euronews (in English)

Rubén Almazán Estepa and Álvaro Cano are ambassadors for the Liga Genuine, a football league for players with intellectual disabilities.

Transcript

00:00When I play football, I feel happy.

00:04When I was a kid, it was really hard for me.

00:07But look, I've made it.

00:10I'm a born footballer.

00:12For me, football is my passion.

00:19I'm so happy to be called a captain.

00:26I'm so happy to be called a captain.

00:30I enjoy playing with my teammates.

00:37The most important thing is to enjoy and have fun.

00:42I'm playing with the Asturians.

00:44I feel very proud.

00:47For me, La Liga Genuin is the best league in the world.

00:53I'm Álvaro Cano Martín.

00:56My name is Rubén Mazan Estepa.

00:58I'm the captain, along with Rubén.

01:02I'm the ambassador of La Liga Genuin.

01:08La Liga Genuin is a league for people with intellectual disabilities.

01:23It includes all professional football teams.

01:27We're at 100% right now.

01:30La Liga Genuin was founded by my father.

01:43He was the president of the club and the president of La Liga.

01:52I was very happy to start La Liga Genuin.

01:58I was very happy to start training and playing.

02:04I felt proud and happy.

02:08We were very happy when La Liga Genuin was founded.

02:15El Gnastic was involved in this because it was an opportunity for people who wanted to join the club to feel fulfilled and enjoy football.

02:32There were very few of us.

02:35We started with 20 people training.

02:39Every year, more and more people have joined.

02:42Now we have more than 60 people on the team.

02:46We have people over 40 years of age.

02:50We also have children under 10 years of age.

02:55I get along very well with my teammates.

03:00They respect the others.

03:04Álvaro and I always like football.

03:08Álvaro and I get along very well on the pitch.

03:13He's like a friend to me.

03:16He's like a brother to me.

03:18He's part of the family.

03:20The project is very important for the people who are part of the team.

03:25Because apart from doing a sport that improves their health,

03:31it's also very good on a social level.

03:34It gives them a good level of self-esteem.

03:37They feel like they're part of a project.

03:40They feel recognized.

03:42That's a great triumph.

03:44My family is very happy.

03:48I'm proud to be a footballer.

03:54That's what I'm aiming for.

03:59Álvaro and Rubén are champions of LaLiga.

04:02They count on us because we're giving them a good image.

04:07Álvaro and I represent them all over Spain.

04:11I'd like to be an ambassador.

04:16To be an ambassador is the most important thing.

04:21I'd like LaLiga to win in other countries.

04:29I give talks here at Racing.

04:32All the kids come.

04:35I like to talk to the kids and tell them about the history of Nastic.

04:38The values we have.

04:41My dream has come true.

04:45I'm part of the Nastic family.

04:50Rubén and Álvaro are the most famous players of Nastic.

04:54Why? Because they love each other a lot.

04:58They come to the games.

05:00They greet the players and encourage them.

05:04They help and support the players and the coaching staff.

05:13When they come to the pitch, the fans greet them.

05:17It's amazing.

05:22The project has grown so much.

05:26I never imagined that the Genuine project would be what it is today.

05:32For me, they are the secret.

05:35Because they have so much hope that it's impossible not to get involved

05:40and not to give the best you have so that you can move forward.

05:45It's been great to reach this dream.

05:50To be a Nastic Genuine player has been unforgettable.

05:56Nastic Genuine

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