Events

Since its first edition in 2023, I have always attended Atleti en Femenino as a spectator. I was greatly surprised when, a few weeks ago, I received an invitation to participate in this year’s event as a guest at a discussion panel. Of course, I didn’t hesitate for a minute and immediately planned everything to ensure I wouldn’t miss the occasion.

On the afternoon of Tuesday, March 18, I went to the Metropolitano, whose auditorium hosted the third edition of the Atleti en Femenino event. Everything was scheduled to start at 7:03 PM, but we participants were asked to arrive at 6:00 PM to finalize the details. Some of the most prominent figures in the Atlético community related to women’s football gathered at this event, and I was delighted to see Amanda Sampedro behind the scenes with her parents, with whom I chatted for quite a while.

The Day of the Peñas is a day designed for all peñistas to come to the stadium and celebrate that we are one red-and-white family. Unfortunately, the sanction imposed a few days ago by Atlético de Madrid on the members of the animation section dampened the festive atmosphere compared to previous years. Many members who had nothing to do with the throwing of lighters during the last derby were unable to enter. Not only that, but they now face a ban from traveling to matches for five games, even though some had already booked flights and hotels.

The essence of a supporters’ club lies not only in attending games together or assisting its members but also in representing Atlético de Madrid and honoring its name. A few months ago, we learned coincidentally that there are some avid Atleti fans among the students in the 4th grade of the public school CEIP “Ntra. Sra. de las Nieves” in La Zarza (Badajoz).

We came up with the idea that we could bring them some joy, and when Christmas arrived, our supporters’ club decided to write to the Three Wise Men so that they could leave them a red-and-white gift on our behalf. Today, they sent us these photos that show their joy upon opening the package, proudly displaying the flags, scarves, and other details inside.

Sometimes, fan clubs come up with ideas that initially seem utopian, but when the International Union of Fan Clubs (Unión Internacional de Peñas) and Club Atlético de Madrid collaborate, everything becomes easier.

One of these ideas was to shape a project that had been in mind for a while but had never been carried out: a Meeting of European Atlético Fan Clubs. The number of fan clubs representing us beyond national borders is growing, and the goal of this meeting was to give them a voice and visibility, and, above all, to make them feel part of the red-and-white family.

We had known for some time about the celebration of the III International Congress of Atlético Madrid Peñas in Badajoz. Our president headed there to collaborate in the organization of the event and, above all, to represent our Peña. The event was organized by the International Union of Peñas under the sponsorship of Cívitas and took place on the 14th and 15th of October.

On Friday, we traveled there to begin organizing everything. Alonso, from the Badajoz-based Peña “Tos por igual,” generously offered his restaurant for a meal for those of us arriving and, in the evening, for an informal dinner that turned out to be a great success. The most festive among us ended the night in one of the city’s trendy venues, while others went straight to the hotel, as the next day promised to be a long one. On Saturday morning, we started distributing accreditations to those arriving at the Río and NH hotels. Welcome bags were prepared for the attendees, containing small tokens of welcome, and it was a pleasure to get to know the different members of the Peñas and reunite with those we already knew.