Atletico Madrid owner smooths things over with Athletic Club after disrespectful comments from CEO

Atletico Madrid the owner Miguel Angel Gil Marin tried to save relations with Athletic Club, after comments made by its own CEO, Enrique Cerezo. There was frustration over the fact that the RFEF did not play their part Copa del Rey the semi-final first leg on Thursday rather than Wednesday, to give them an extra day's rest. They felt it was unfair that Los Leones played on Friday, while Los Rojiblancos were in action on Sunday.

“The truth is that I thought that the match would be postponed one day because, apart from the fact that it was good for us to have a day of rest for the players, there was something fundamental: that it was also good for them. you have that extra day,” Cerezo said Chain Cope.

“But it seems that 'Bilbao' did not accept the solution, the Federation said that it was a problem between the two clubs… And I only say one thing: we are mulattos, and we will see each other on the road. It is a Spanish saying who says what he wants to say.”

This caused a great controversy in the Basque Country, with most people at Athletic not being called “Bilbao”. Its full name is Athletic Club de Bilbao, but when the dictator Francisco Franco led a military coup and after 40 years of repression, he forced the names of football clubs to be Castilian, changing their name to Atletico de Bilbao . Calling them Bilbao is disrespectful, and evokes the suppression of Basque culture by Franco.

Asked about why he refers to them as such, Cerezo did not back down.

“I haven't heard anything about it, since I've known them, they've always been called Bilbao,” continued Cerezo.

After the incident, Gil Marin called the president of Athletic Jon Uriarte to smooth things over, apologizing for Cerezo and assuring that the two clubs were not at war. It speaks to the sensitive nature of the Spanish language and culture policy.