After years of American hegemony, Spain and England will return the Old Continent to the top and will play the first European final in twenty years. The winner will take over from Germany, who beat Sweden in the final in 2003, and will add their name to the short list of world champions along with the United States (4), Germany (2), Japan and Norway. "What we want is to be the best in the world and we will achieve it by winning the final," Jorge Vilda asserted in the preview.
A World Cup final is the game that every footballer wants to play, although some, the most veteran, could never even dream of it. “Spain has always been a country that loves football, but we girls have grown up thinking that this was not our place. There were always obstacles. So it is important that all the girls know that this space is ours, that we can play in the World Cup finals, that we are benchmarks. That too is history”, said Irene Paredes yesterday in an emotional message at the gates of the final. She, along with Alexia Putellas and Jenni Hermoso, are the only three soccer players who have played in the three World Cups that Spain has played and she is well aware of what it has cost to get here. The FC Barcelona central defender returned to the national team after the conflict with the Federation, although it cost him the captaincy. Something that he assumes with elegance and always acting as a shadow leader: “The issue of the captaincy has been settled from the beginning. I am not captain. There are three captains assigned, it's like that, you don't have to think about it anymore, ”she said when she was asked about lifting the trophy in Sydney.
There will be more than 83,000 spectators in the stands of Stadium Australia, including Queen Letizia and Infanta Sofía, the Minister of Sports, Miquel Iceta, and the President of the Spanish Federation, Luis Rubiales, who has accompanied the team throughout the tournament. More relatives of the players have also traveled along with some of the soccer players included in the shortlist, but who ended up being left out of the 23 summoned. “They are a very important part of this team, of this team, they are part of it. I'm excited that they were able to come. They are present and future and as of September the ball continues to roll”, said Vilda. They will need your support in a stadium where the majority will support the lionesses. And it is that the British account for 33% of the 26 million inhabitants that Australia has.
