The other success of Alianza: a female team that seeks professionalization and with foreign signings dreams of the Libertadores

These are days of extreme happiness in La Victoria. Alianza Lima’s men’s team won phase 2 and now will seek the national title against Sporting Cristal, while the female is preparing for the Copa Libertadores after being crowned Peruvian champion in a historic year, with a televised league and taking giant steps towards professionalization. There is still a need for the celebration to be complete: those led by Carlos Bustos go for one more star; those of Samir Mendoza want to make history in their first international tournament. It is still missing, but the fruits of a great project, of serious work throughout the year, are already bearing fruit.

“We started this project in 2020, right in the year of the pandemic. The first was achieved with the title, the results make the product attractive and self-sustaining. The other also because we have more and more fans “, says Sisy Quiroz, head of the women’s division of the Alliance institution and one of the most capable women in the country in this field, also co-founder of the Women’s Soccer 7 Leagues, a tournament that seeks to promote sport at the national level .

Alianza officially launched the social networks of the women’s soccer team in July 2020. Almost a year and a half later, they have 66.4 thousand followers on Facebook, 54.6 thousand on Instagram and 14.5 thousand on Twitter.. “This is also thanks to the fan, who is unconditional. They always showed us their support from the beginning and, thank God, the results have accompanied us throughout this year “he adds.

In a world that is governed by the points that are obtained in 90 minutes – if you win you are the best, if you lose the worst; sometimes the game doesn’t even matter-, the intimate cast managed to sustain the project with results and work. Two aspects that when they go hand in hand, nothing can go wrong. .

“What we did from this year is that we train five times a week. We also gave our footballers the best conditions to work as professionals, although women’s soccer in Peru still has amateur status. I think that in this regard, the physical and technical level of the girls has improved a lot “, analyzes Quiroz.

To the excellent sports work was added the marketing area, in charge of giving visibility to a discipline that deserves it and fights for it every day. The first big action happened as soon as the social networks were created. The Peruvian rapper Gillow introduced the women’s team to the beat of the genre that has been gaining ground worldwide in recent years. The initiative was highlighted by the FIFA and historical players like the North American Hope Solo. The message generated an impact and was the starting point of a great project.

This year, unlike last season, the men’s team got involved in supporting the growth of the women’s team. Hernán Barcos, scorer and leader of the Alianza de Bustos, gave the girls a sound system for the dressing room and they thanked the gesture by celebrating their goals as the ‘Pirate’. But that was not all.

. “It was a campaign that went hand in hand with Nike, basically to give visibility to women’s football”Quiroz points out.

“One of our commitments is to contribute to the professionalization of women’s football in Peru and eliminate all prejudices and barriers that exist in society so that women can choose the ball instead of other things.. Not only do we care about the game, we also try to give a message to society, to the girls who want to grow up having a reference in this country ”, it states. The road is long, but Alianza has already started to walk it.

The dream of the Libertadores

Lima Alliance will face for the first time in its history a Liberators cup. After winning with great comfort – not counting the final against Universitario, which was very even -, the Victorian team will now seek to have a good participation in the continental tournament that will take place between November 3 and 21 in Paraguay.

The ‘Intimas’ were reinforced with four Colombian players: Sara Martinez (steering wheel), Fabiana Yantén (defending), Wendy Bonilla (front) and Diana Ospina (steering wheel). Of these, Ospina, 32, is the most experienced. He has played two World Cups, one Summer Olympic Games and won the Lima 2019 Pan American Games with his team.

“In women’s football it is normal for teams to strengthen each other for the Copa Libertadores, a tournament that is a hybrid of professional and amateur players. We couldn’t stay behind, that’s how the club understood it, and that’s why we were able to bring in four Colombian players who will give more weight to our team “, explains Sisy, who clarifies that the signings are only loans to play the championship in Paraguay.

Alianza not only strengthened, it also maintains the champion squad with the scorer Adriana Lucar, Myriam Tristan and Sandy Dorador. He also added the goalkeeper Fiorella Valverde, from the César Vallejo University.

Aware of the gap that exists between women’s soccer in Peru and other countries such as Brazil, Colombia, Argentina or Chile; the Victorian cast will seek to make history and continue to move towards professionalization. Women can play soccer and clubs like Alianza are that agent of change for a better society.