Interviews
WED 08.02.2023
Like many Americans, Nick Armijo dabbled in soccer growing up. He played a little bit as a kid and would casually tune into the World Cup every four years.
But it wasn’t until 2010 when everything changed.
Armijo, then 15, watched in awe of Uruguayan striker Diego Forlán, whose tournament-leading five goals helped propel La Celeste to the semifinals before bowing out to the Netherlands 3-2. Forlán, who scored in that match and in the third-place playoff loss to Germany, was awarded the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player.
“After that World Cup, I was pretty much hooked on the sport,” Armijo says.
It was then time to pick a club team knowing he had another four years to wait for the next World Cup, so obviously he first looked into Forlán’s club: Atlético Madrid.
“The more I read about the club and the club’s history, the more I kind of really identified with how it wasn’t one of the two big LaLiga teams—Barça or Real Madrid—and I really liked how it was kind of the more working class club of Madrid,” he says. “I liked how the team’s success was much more centered on the strength of the collective rather than simply having the best individual stars on the field.
“I think it was the right place, right time, right player, right club and right club history that kind of made it all happen for me.”
Shortly thereafter as Atléti won the 2013-14 LaLiga title, Armijo was hooked even more to his club and players like Diego Godín, Koke, Diego Costa, Tiago and Juanfran.
Nearly a decade later, Armijo made his first trek to Estadio Metropolitano to watch Atléti in-person. He caught the club’s 2-0 win against Elche on December 29—a match that also included a trio of red cards—and toured the museum.
“It was an absolutely chill-inducing experience,” he says. “That was definitely a bucket-list thing for me.”
While he was surrounded by nearly 50,000 fans clad in blue, red and white in support of Atléti at the Metropolitano, back home in Denver, the middle school math teacher is in search of fellow fans, which even includes trying to persuade his students.
“I think there’s a few of us around Denver,” Armijo says. “I remember one time I was riding my bike and someone yelled ‘Atleti.’ … That’s kind of the next goal—to try to start a peña. I try to convert all my students, but the allure of Real Madrid and Barcelona is too much.”
FULL SERIES:
A Breakaway from Household Support
Real’s remontadas roped in this fan
Unexpected Encounter Leads to Unforgettable Experience
Sevilla Fandom Comes Full Circle
UD Almería unites community in New Jersey
Basque Roots Grow in Meaning for Boise Student
Local peña helps Celta Vigo fans overcome morriña
San Diego, the Birthplace of the first Cádiz Peña in the U.S.
Fate, luck and curiosity brought this fan to Atleti
Real Sociedad fandom blossoming in Boise
Growing up in awe of Sánchez, Real Madrid
Ortegas proudly promote Real Betis around the globe
¡Vamos mi Sevilla! ¡Vamos Nueva York!
Mexico’s Márquez Converted This Culé
Covid can’t stop this Valencia CF socio
Living near the Bernabéu led to this fan loving Real Madrid
How a U.S. Elementary School Principal Helped Save Real Oviedo
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