“We feel represented by Boca Juniors, a team that plays well, but above all, one that gives their all in every ball. After that, we can win or lose; it’s a game, but attitude is non-negotiable.“
I grew up in General San Martin, Buenos Aires, Argentina where I still live. My love for Boca Juniors was inherited from my father; I still remember when he gave me my first jersey.
Through photography, my idea is to capture the feeling I get every time I go to see Boca Juniors play. Art is the way to immortalise moments, and that’s where the true search lies.
Boca is my way of living and feeling. Living as a Boca fan perfectly describes what one feels.
My most cherished memory is the first time I went to La Bombonera; I was 7 years old, and my dad had the chance to take me. He narrated all the players to me, but I already knew them.
During my teenage years, I used to record the games on a cassette and listen to them all the time. It was my favourite toy.
My greatest football idol is Juan Roman Riquelme, the best player I’ve seen wearing our jersey. I also want to mention Martin Palermo, Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Marcelo Delgado, and obviously, Diego Maradona.
La Bombonera is a complete experience, not just the match itself. La Boca is the most iconic neighbourhood in Buenos Aires, and match days are lived in a special way there. Boca is a club that creates class equality; it doesn’t matter what social class you belong to, here we are all equal, “We are Bosteros.”
I’m going to mention a phrase that describes us perfectly. It’s from Writer and University Professor, Martin Kohan: “You can never be too much of a Boca fan because nothing is too much at Boca.”
River Plate is our lifelong rival. Beating them is poetic justice for us. Boca is playing better than last year; I would love for us to win the Copa de la Liga, and next year, let’s play the Copa Libertadores again. Last year we made it to the final, and we were close.
We feel represented by a team that plays well, but above all, one that gives their all in every ball. After that, we can win or lose; it’s a game, but attitude is non-negotiable.
All words and images by Ignacio Fernandez.
All our thanks to Ignacio.
To follow his work, please click here