Without the same excitement that naturally arouses most sports in the Big Applewithout commercial premises decorated with flags, without greater promotions of offers in Hispanic restaurants, to enjoy the games on a giant screen, the FIFA Women’s World Cup takes place in New York City, which is underway in Australia and New Zealand.
But, compared to previous tournaments, where these matches went practically unnoticed, in this edition that started on July 20 and ends on August 20, this global event begins to arouse a little more interest in immigrant communities, especially with the women’s teams from Colombia, Costa Rica, Argentina, Brazil, Panama and the United States on the pitch.
He Colombian Santiago Maya, in charge of bar restaurant ‘Basurero’ on Steinway street in Astoria, one of the most popular sites among Latino communities that are fans of sports shows, He assures that his countrymen have shown great interest in supporting the Colombian team.
“Since the first game was at 10 p.m., yes it was filled with football fans and of course Colombian. There is growing support for our women’s team. There was a lot of excitement when our team debuted. The problem with the other games where Latin American teams have participated is that they have been at five in the morning, so it is very difficult for many to follow themSantiago commented.
Colombia’s 2-0 victory over the South Korean team in the first round inflamed the spirits in a match where Linda Caicedo, a cancer survivor, once again inspired the fans by scoring the second goal. The first goal was scored by Catalina Usme in a penalty.
“Now we are waiting for the game of the Colombians with Germany this weekend (Sunday). It does excite me to see those women playing professionally. Obviously it is a sport that was born among men, like many activities, but everything is changing. There will come a time when people look forward to this World Cup with the same excitement. Ours are a ‘berracas’ (hardened)“, he says Miguel Cifuentes from Barranquilla, a fan of the ‘king sport’.
“They don’t give balls”
For his part, Francisco Pérez of the Restaurant ‘Boca Junior’one of the meeting places for soccer fans in New York, especially fans of the Argentine national team, was emphatic when warning that the women’s world cup does not arouse the slightest interest.
“They don’t give him a ball (they don’t pay attention to him). Perhaps this type of tournament is very strong in Sweden and other European countries. The other problem with this year’s games is that many are at dawn. Very few will follow a game at four or five in the morning”, he stressed.
In the opinion of Carlos Castañeda from Puebla another follower of all the soccer championships, not only the World Cups, the fact that Mexico is not in the table of the participating groups takes away from a city like New York, much of the interest of the big fans of these meetings.
“It’s not machismo. But in general, people don’t even know that there is a women’s soccer world cup because there are traditions that are difficult to break. It will take many years for the emotion to be the same. I know there are great players. That the participation of women in everything has evolved a lot, in basketball, in baseball, in everything”.
Carlos remembers the past 2022 Men’s Soccer World Cup, which was held in Qatar. On Roosevelt Avenue in Queens When Mexico, Brazil, Ecuador or Argentina played, everything stopped. Itinerant merchants put televisions in the streets. Stores offered special discounts for people to enjoy the game.
“Now this is barely mentioned. But the time will come when the same uproar awakens. In my case:I’m going to the United States!”
A big gap on the pitch
What happens with the interest around women’s soccer in New York, happens in various “playing fields”, which describe the large gaps between men and womennot only in sport.
Based on figures shared by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) although the football industry generates more than 500,000 million dollars each year, 49% of the players in this discipline do not receive a salary. “And 87% will finish their career before the age of 25, due to low or no pay.”
“Even the best players are not exempt from playing on an uneven field. While Lionel Messi receives 130 million euros a year, Ada Hegerberg, the best player in the world according to FIFA, receives 400,000 euros a year. A salary 325 times less than that of the Argentine”, highlights an IDB report.
There are several anecdotes about the lack of equality between men and women in this sport. For example in 2012, the Santos team from Brazil eliminated the women’s branch, only to cover Neymar’s salary and delay his sale to FC Barcelona.
The data:
- 2 billion people It is projected that the spectators of the FIFA Women’s Soccer World Cup 2023 will be the largest audience in history for a single women’s sport, according to United Nations estimates.
