According to data handled by Salvador Gomar, president of the Valencian Community Football Federation (FFCV), DANA has caused the paralysis of 20,000 licenses in regional grassroots football, affecting 37 fields (of which 15 are completely demolished). ), and has ruined numerous clubs in the province. A balance of war whose reconstruction requires an investment estimated at 20 million euros. It’s not just making a new field, it’s everything else: changing rooms, water, electricity and heating infrastructure, stands, walls, fences… «Here in Paiporta nothing is saved. Everything is absolutely destroyed and useless. “You have to start completely from scratch,” Juanjo Casañ, the president of Paiporta CF, explains to ABC. Standard Related News Si Vicente Moreno During the week, cleaning mud in Masanasa, and on Saturday, at the Bernabéu Javier AsprónRelated News He was born in Biescas and now lives in standard Alfafar No Escartín, the former cyclist who lived through the two worst floods in the history of Spain: “We only have to fight” Pablo Lodeiro The cyclist witnessed the floods in his native Biescas in 96 and the current DANA in Valencia «We are collecting data because some are devastated and others only need minimal works. I estimate that to recover the 15 fields that are devastated, 400,000 euros will be needed for each one. Among all the affected fields, I get an average of 200,000 euros. The arrangements will cost around 20 million euros. Bugarra is totally destroyed. Alfafar is a piece of land right now that is being used to dump debris and broken cars. The two Paiporta fields too…», Gomar details, knowing that there are long months of intense work ahead. The top leader of Valencian football believes that the first stone must be laid as soon as possible and has made the decision to resume competitions this weekend, allowing the clubs and teams affected by DANA to do so as soon as they consider they are in a position to so be it. A measure that generates division of opinions among those affected. Everyone agrees that normality must be recovered as soon as possible, especially for the children, who are eager to play football again, but how this return is going to take place raises doubts. “The vast majority of clubs that have not been affected, they are giving up their facilities so that those who have been left without a field can go there to train and play games, but it is going to be very difficult to redo everything. Reconstruction will have to do with aid, and this will surely be insufficient. I am convinced that neither the institutions nor the State are going to cover all the expenses that this entails,” details Santi Cañizares, former Valencia soccer player and one of those affected by DANA. «There are many people who have been left with nothing: without a home, without a car, without a job… And the business fabric is also very damaged. The ruin is absolute,” he adds. «I won’t be the one to cause problems, but at the moment I don’t see it. I need more information and more data. Who pays for transportation to go to training and games? At what times will we be able to train and compete? It is true that the Federation has not rushed us, but the logistics are very complex,” reflects Pedro Pere, president of the Unión de Benitússer Favara CF, an entity that has 415 children and adolescents distributed in 24 teams. The field of this club is now a cemetery for cars affected by DANA: «This is not a matter of days. At least, I estimate that we will need eight months to have new facilities. “The desire to train again is unanimous, but to compete not so much anymore. What Pedro Pere thinks is what more and more affected clubs think. There are families who have been left with nothing, with the consequent economic and emotional damage, and their children have had to be transferred to other schools. In them, football will be healing, but it is one thing to play again and another to compete. Those who cannot, may suffer even more for it. «Empathy is key and we have to be sincere. Sometimes children are kind of cruel. I already know of cases of children affected by DANA who, in the new school where other children are, make fun of them for not having a house, a soccer team, or a field to play on. They should not be marginalized anymore. That’s why I have doubts about resuming the competition,” says Pere. One idea would be to play games on the weekend, but not in the leagues themselves. In fact, many of the affected teams are being invited to tournaments in other regions of Spain, at expenses paid. This is the case of Benitússer himself and also of Paiporta FC. «The children in Paiporta need fresh air, to get together, to see each other, to hug each other, to hit the ball. And their parents too, but of course many have gone bankrupt and we are not going to demand an economic effort from them so that their children pay the fee and can play. They won’t have to do it. We will help you in any way we can. Also to the coaches, many of them only have this job. We are going to open a solidarity account so that everyone who wants to help us can do so. Luckily there are many. Even Inter Milan has called us to offer us financial support. And they have invited us to tournaments in Catalonia, Madrid, Andalusia…», analyzes Casañ.Possible injusticesThe leader understands that there is no solution that everyone likes and that certain injustices may be commented on, but he assumes that there is no other option. «We cannot all return at the same time, but the competition cannot be stopped because some teams are affected. It may not be the right thing to do, but there is no other option. We are going to ask to postpone two days and in these two weeks we have to see how to organize the logistics of taking the children to the fields, talking to the parents… The children need to play soccer, it relieves the pain,” says Casañ. Paiporta FC is the most hurt club of all and wants to set an example. He puts himself on the more understanding side and will adapt to the context of the season. Their idea is to train and play in a venue that is as close and comfortable as possible. This is how they believe that we are beginning to get out of the drama: “We have to play football and help will surely come soon. We have a budget of 300,000 euros and everything has collapsed, but we have to start, we have to climb this first step. “We have to live with this discomfort until there is some normality.” Apart from covered transport, an aid that would alleviate, for the moment, the accounts of the affected clubs would be that of the mutual benefit. «We had only been in the league for a few days. We just paid 40,000 euros in children’s insurance. That money comes from the fees paid by parents. I hope that the Federation negotiates with the insurers and, at least, if we cannot compete, that money is saved for next season. We can’t even count on sponsors. Yes, 90% of them are from the town and the businesses here are destroyed,” explains Pere. All this and many more things will be discussed today in Valencia, where Salvador Gomar will meet with all the affected clubs. The teams hope to come out of this match with real help and with the certainty that the Federation will be at their side until the last club and the last field return to what they were before that fateful Tuesday, October 29, which devastated the life, jobs, schools, soccer fields and the dreams of thousands of people. It is the complicated labyrinth of Valencian grassroots football to get out of the mud and get back onto the grass.
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