“We are a responsible Foundation that wants to keep growing and helping” says Sebastián Fernández Reyes ‘Basti’, head of the Social Department for the last five years.
Blue and White Values have been promoted for six seasons, with the collaboration of Obra Social “la Caixa” in schools in Málaga and throughout the province. During the last course, between September 2019 and March 2020, Raúl Iznata was master of ceremonies, along with Málaga CF, Málaga Femenino and Málaga Genuine players enjoying spending time with the children at a dozen Málaga schools.
One of the Foundation’s slogans is ‘Tú puedes’ (‘You Can’), applied to the now classic Solidarity Match. In 19/20, for #MálagaLugo, 64 social groups were invited to watch the match at La Rosaleda, with more than 4,000 kilos of foodstuffs collected with SANAMAR and the Fundación Olivares helping in this solidarity action.
In addition, the Foundation’s Solidarity Calendar was new to 2020. The Supercapacitad@s from Málaga Genuine, together with 12 social groups, gave more visibility to these wonderful people at iconic locations in the city. Copyrap collaborated on this project.
For the fourth consecutive year, the Foundation carried out the round table ‘A TEAM against gender violence’, showing its social commitment to this issue, with the support of the Sports Department of Málaga University.
Equal opportunities is another element the MCF Foundation is passionate about. Together with Málaga CF Femenino, various talks were held in March to commemorate International Women’s Day. The first ‘Guerreras y Genuinas’ tournament was also held.
A magical moment during the year was of course the third edition of the #SiempreFuerte Awards. The special gala event took place at the Picasso Museum on 12th February, in memory of Pablo Ráez who remains in the hearts of everyone present. The last event before COVID-19 took over was the Málaga Carnival, with La Rosaleda and the Cervantes Theatre taking centre stage during many Blue and White celebrations.
Not even a global pandemic could stem the enthusiasm of the boys and girls from the Supercapacitad@s Football School. With triple the number of members compared to last season (20 to 61), during these tough months the Genuine team didn’t stop reinventing itself. Not forgetting the provisional Fair Play competition by LaLiga Genuine Santander before the suspension due to coronavirus, remote group training sessions were held to stay in shape, so-called ‘Supertardes’ featuring some well-known Malagueño faces. In addition, Saturdays Nights Dance brought rhythm and joy to the weekend nights…The team also starred in a virtual exhibition with 61 photographs showing the multiple activities carried out by the school.
Altruistic donations from the makers of Malaguista visors in the fight against COVID and support for the ‘Mascarillas para toda Málaga’ project; the Solidarity T-Shirt whose sale in the online MCF Store was a resounding success; the ‘Nieto Malaguista’ project keeping elderly people company during lockdown; and the collaboration with the ‘Operación Potito’ baby food distribution initiative, amongst others, are some of the standout actions undertaken by the Foundation that crossed borders in 2020 with donations of Blue and White merchandise nationally and internationally.
During the hardest year in the Málaga CF Foundation’s memory, it has generated empathy, love and smiles, bringing light to millions of happy hearts. THANK YOU. And special thanks also to our sponsors and friends, Ayuntamiento de Málaga, Diputación Provincial de Málaga, la Obra Social “la Caixa” and SANAMAR Alimentación.
