Chelsea, a football club from the southwest of London, has spared no money to sign the Colombian Mayra Ramírez. The directives have signed with Levante the most expensive transfer in the history of women's football, as announced this Friday by both institutions. “The operation amounts to 450,000 fixed euros, plus 50,000 euros of variables for objectives that the club expects to be met,” it reads. in a statement from the Valencian club, which last year announced budget cuts to its women's team. The forward, for her part, has shown her emotion in videos that the London club has released. “Being part of such a great team is a dream that I have had since I was a child and that now comes true,” she commented.
The Chelsea women's team's X account has been filled with celebratory messages, several of them with the hashtag in Spanish #Hello Mayra. “Straight to work,” says the club in a Tweet with two photos of a training session on the Cobham courts. “Now in the center of the action,” celebrates another image in which Ramírez kicks a ball. The priority, in the short term, is the match that Chelsea will play next Tuesday against Paris Football Club to earn a place in the semifinal of the Champions League, the main European tournament. Ramírez joins the team to replace Australian Sam Kerr, who was injured earlier this month.
The London team, champion of the last four seasons of the English league, is the sixth in the Colombian forward's career. Born 24 years ago in Sibaté, a few kilometers south of Bogotá, the first stages of her career took place in her country: she started at Real Pasión in Cundinamarca, continued in Fortaleza and shone at Independiente Medellín. She entered the Colombian national team in 2018 and was part of the team that won the gold medal at the 2019 Pan American Games. At the same time, European clubs also noticed her potential. Sporting Club de Huelva signed her in 2020 and had her on their women's team for two years, until her transfer to Levante was signed. She wore the Barça shirt for a year and a half, in 40 games in which she scored 19 goals.
Ramírez's career is rising at a meteoric pace that is no longer possible at the Valencian club, which announced last December a budget cut in the women's team to prioritize the men's team. It didn't matter that women were hot on the heels of Real Madrid and Barcelona in the first division and that they were the club's most successful—four Leagues, six Queen's Cups and two Spanish Super Cups. Victories on the playing field did not compensate for the financial balances. “We are going to support the female to the extent we can and with the structure we can. Today the priority is the survival of the club and moving up to the first division [en la sección masculina]”, then explained the CEO of Levante, José Danvila.
The signing of Ramírez is a lifeline for Levante, in which figures such as the Brazilian Gabi Nunes and the Spanish Anna Torrodà and Paula Fernández shine. The agreement of 450,000 fixed euros (around $488,000) exceeds the 350,000 that Chelsea paid in 2020 for the Danish Pernille Harder, the 400,000 that Barcelona paid in 2022 for the English Keira Walsh and the 400,000 that Manchester City agreed to last July by the Dutch Jill Roord. 50,000 euros (about $54,000) can be added if Ramírez meets objectives such as participating in 30% of the team's games.
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Levante has fired the Colombian forward in a formal statement that contrasts with the enthusiasm of its English rival. “Also taking into account the will of the footballer, this operation is carried out that breaks all barriers in the history of world women's football. From Levante UD we thank Mayra Ramírez for her work and professionalism during this year and a half defending our shield and we wish her all the luck in the world in her new professional and personal stage,” the Valencian club highlighted.
“A dynamic forward”
The Colombian soccer player has gained recognition as a forward with great physical strength, who performs well on the wings and can also play as a striker. Chelsea coach Paul Green explained after the signing that Ramírez is a “dynamic” player and that she performs well “anywhere on the front line.” “We have seen her develop in Spain in recent years and we believe that her style will work well in England,” he said.
Ramírez is the first Colombian soccer player to join Chelsea and the second to land in England — Jorelyn Carabalí moved to Brighton & Hove last year. She is part of a generation that has put women's soccer at the center of attention of Colombians, despite the great difficulties that the local league faces in financing itself. The team reached the quarterfinals of the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand last year. In addition to Ramírez, the Tricolor includes figures such as Linda Caicedo (Real Madrid), Leicy Santos (Atlético de Madrid), Catalina Usme (Pachuca, Mexico) and Ana María Guzmán (Bayern Munich, Germany).
The growth opportunity for Ramírez is evident, as she herself has recognized. “[La Premier League] It is one of the best leagues in the world. Spain, of course, is a good league too… and Barcelona plays at the highest level. But I think that, as a whole, the level of the English league is now the best,” he remarked in statements that he collects. a statement from Chelsea.
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