A Conquense player reports homophobic and sexist insults during the match: “Faggot, brat, daughter of a bitch” | Football | Sport

Unión Balompédica Conquense player, Nacho Ruiz, denounced the “homophobic and sexist” insults he received on Sunday during his visit to the CD Quintanar del Rey football field to play the Second RFEF provincial derby which faced both teams. In a message published on his Instagram account, the player recounts and condemns the humiliating expressions uttered by some fans of the Quintana Roo club from a space in the stands. “Faggot”, “fucking faggot”, “liñata”, “daughter of a bitch” or “poor mother of yours who has a girlfriend and not a man” were some of the niceties uttered, according to Ruiz himself, “by most of the stands”. Another example of the verbal violence that still persists in many football fields across the country.

“Regardless of whether these insults can affect me or not, which they don’t, and far from victimizing me, given that online I can receive words or threats simply because of the way I dress and I have never spoken about it openly, I think it is deplorable that in the 21st century there continues to be this hatred on football pitches, whether it is homophobia, machismo, racism…”, underlines the 28-year-old player to his 20,000 followers on Instagram. “Let’s not normalize it, let’s make sure that this sport doesn’t become hate, but rather entertainment for the people who go to watch a match. Let’s not make a beautiful sport like football ugly”, asks the Conquense defender, who is playing his first season for the Unión Balompédica and who, in addition to being a footballer, is a model and content creator.

The episode, according to the report by referee José Manuel López Rodríguez, in the part referring to the public, forced the activation of the protocol against these episodes for two minutes after the player himself communicated, taking advantage of an interruption in the match. “He tells me that he heard xenophobic and racist insults coming from the stands. Immediately afterwards we activate the protocol and communicate it to the delegate on the field so that he can issue a warning via the public address system asking that such behavior not be repeated. The match resumed without further incidents after the announcement via the public address system.” “The game was stopped for two minutes, which was then neutralised”, specifies the referee, who assures that “the refereeing team did not hear the insults at any time”.

The player is receiving numerous messages of support across social networks. The Unión Balompédica Conquense took her defense with a message on her X account denouncing the “homophobic and sexist insults” to which she was subjected. Football should be a space of respect and fun for everyone. We trust that the person responsible will be punished. We are with you, Nacho,” the team says in a statement. “All my support to Nacho Ruiz. Sport and competition do not represent situations as miserable as the one experienced in the Cuenca derby. Those who insult and harass must be isolated; to the sexists and homophobes who do not represent our society at all,” asked the Minister of Equality of Castilla-La Mancha, Sara Simón, on the same social network.

Ruiz will provide more details on the episode in a press conference this Tuesday at the Conquense stadium. The president of the Quintanar CD, Pedro Navarro, also condemns what happened. “We work hard to ensure that there are four undocumented immigrants who tarnish the image of the team,” he complains in a telephone conversation with EL PAÍS. The club does not have cameras and is using WhatsApp groups of members and fans who were in the area from where the insults were hurled to identify the perpetrators. Navarro didn’t hear them, he says, because he was on the opposite side, but promises to “forbid them from entering the field” as long as he remains president. He also asked for the player’s phone number to apologize “on behalf of the team”. “Respect, above all, forward. This is a sport”, he reiterates.