News
MON 02.01.2017
Football is often touted as a way of bringing people together and if there’s one thing that can draw together the large number of expats living along the Costa del Sol, it’s Malaga CF.
“There are many Danes living in this area, in places like Mijas and Sotogrande, and obviously many of us have become big Malaga fans,” says Morten Moller, president of the Costa del Sol-based Peña Malaguista de Dinamarca, while in conversation with www.laliga.es. “Of course we could watch the games alone at home but that’s not what football is about! Today our group has almost 300 members. The majority are from Denmark but there are also other Scandinavians from Sweden and Norway. Many have retired here but we come from all kinds of backgrounds; I was a journalist for 30 years, some were even footballers and TV presenters.”
“We have 95 seats reserved for every match at La Rosaleda and almost 300 for the big games against teams like Real Madrid and Barcelona,” he continues. “We even organise yearly trips to watch the team play away from home. In the past we’ve travelled to places like Valencia, Bilbao and San Sebastian. It’s a bit of a holiday too!”
The group takes particular pride in the way it is run and its high level of organisation. “We employ a full-time secretary who runs our affairs on a day-to-day basis, something that has really allowed us to expand our horizons,” explains Moller. “We have over 40 sponsors, among them local companies and foreign banks with clients here in the area, and we are very active when it comes to fundraising for both our peña and the wider community. We’ve held concerts for over 500 people and every year we donate to the Cudeca Foundation cancer hospice in Benalmadena [a town around 12 kilometres south-west of Malaga]. It’s our way of giving back to the area.”
Many of the group’s members have been fans for many years now and have seen how the club has changed over the years. “Above all we’ve seen how the club has become more international,” says Moller. “15 years ago, nobody at the club spoke English; now they all do! There’s now a particularly international environment which suits us very well and we have an excellent relationship with the club.”
For Moller, the future looks bright both off and on the pitch. “We’ve been very surprised with the progress we’ve made this season. With lots of new players, it looked like it would be a difficult season but the team have played very well, especially at home. We’re optimistic about the future!”
© LALIGA - 2017