A Maltese feminist who previously hated football has now expressed her undying love for the game.
The change of heart by Krista Schembri, 30, from Naxxar, coincided with Malta’s national women’s team gaining promotion in the UEFA Nations League.
“Football isn’t called the beautiful game for nothing. It is kinetic poetry – each pass a verse, every passage of play a stanza, and every game a metaphor for life with all its ups and downs, its joy and its sorrow,” Schembri said.
“One could say it’s also an allegory for the feminist struggle – striving tirelessly, together as a collective, to score the goal of dismantling patriarchal structures,” the University lecturer added.
Schembri admitted her view of the sport had not been as positive in the past.
“Have I previously stated that football is just a bunch of men running after a ball? Yes. Have I made fun of my boyfriend for being emotionally invested in his team? Also yes. Have I accused him of mansplaining after asking how offside works? Again, yes. But that was before I watched women’s football. Well, OK, just yesterday’s game. Actually just the goals on Lovin Malta’s Instagram post. But those sublime goals scored by… two women… were enough to convince me it’s the best sport ever. As long as it’s played by women of course.”
Meanwhile, the South End Core, the Malta national team fan group, has announced its main chant at men’s games would be ‘Irridu n-nisa’ from now on.
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