Watch: The fan-led league with inclusion at its heart
Rubén Almazán Estepa and Álvaro Cano are ambassadors for the Liga Genuine, a football league for players with intellectual disabilities.
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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