Villas-Boas and Pedro Duarte on Boavista: “A wound to Porto’s heritage” | OneFootball

André Villas-Boas and Pedro Duarte, respectively the presidents of FC Porto and Porto City Council, expressed concern about the difficult period being faced by Boavista, one of the clubs with the deepest tradition in the Invicta city.

“FC Porto must be present wherever the city needs it: in schools, neighborhoods, social institutions, support for people with disabilities, the promotion of physical activity, and access to sport. The greatness of a club is not measured only by the trophies it keeps, but also by the lives it is able to transform. That is why the situation Boavista is going through should sadden and concern us all. The loss of activity of a century-old institution in the city is no one’s victory; it is a wound in the sporting and social heritage of the city of Porto. It is also a warning about the opaque interests and wrongdoers that continue to plague football, treating century-old institutions as disposable assets and forgetting that clubs belong to history, to communities, and to people. We cannot remain indifferent. Defending clubs is defending cities, access to sport, and the social wealth they carry,” said André Villas-Boas in the speech he gave during the ceremony in which he received the Medal of Merit from Porto City Council.

“We are working with Boavista’s management to try to ensure that the sports sections remain active and that those spaces remain in use, and this is being done through the provision of municipal facilities, which is already happening today. In circumstances where Boavista is not able to accommodate certain types of athletes, for example in some age groups where it does not have enough players to form a team, in those cases we are finding alternatives by turning to other clubs in the city, which have shown great solidarity and willingness to help. Boavista is an institution that in a few days will mark 122 years of existence and has a history that has left its mark on the city of Porto, which is why we are naturally concerned and are available and interested in supporting the club’s members so that we can find a sustainable situation for the club’s future. If Boavista’s members have a plan and the will to save the club, Porto City Council is absolutely available to help Boavista build a future,” Pedro Duarte added, noting that several clubs from Invicta have already shown they are willing to help.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.