MADRID (AP) — Inaki Williams takes pride in becoming Athletic Bilbao’s first black captain when he says “the far right is fashionable.”
Williams, 31, one of the first black players to join the club, will take over the team’s main caption this season.
Historically, athletics have had few black athletes. Because it only places people from rural or adjacent areas of the Basque region in northern Spain.
Williams and his younger brother Nico were born in the industrial city of Bilbao, north of Ghana’s parents who traveled long journeys to Europe in search of a better life.
“This means a lot,” Williams said at a press conference. “It seems fate was how my mother and father gave birth to me in Bilbao 31 years ago,” Williams said. “We are fortunate to represent the many people who come from abroad to make a living, and it is important to us to refer to them in the Basque Country and Spain.
“We come from humble families and being able to express this is good for everyone,” he said. “The far right seems fashionable. We who have a voice need to continue working, misleading people and overcome barriers.”
The Williams brothers, who have been subjected to racist insults in Spain, have played for athletics since their youth. Inaki Williams I chose to play for the Ghana national team At the final World Cup, the 23-year-old brother Nico was a regular on the Spanish team.
Nico Williams has been one of the rising stars of Spanish football and reportedly negotiated to join Barcelona this season, but he has finally been in the process of Extend his contract Being with the athletics.
Basque Country Club will be playing in the Champions League for the first time since the 2014-15 season.
“For many players, this is the first time in the Champions League and it’s extremely exciting,” Inaki Williams said. “In Bilbao, there is a great desire to hear that (the Champions League) national anthem again.”
The Athletics finished fourth in the Spanish league last season, following Atletico Madrid, Real Madrid and Champions Barcelona.
“We promise to be ambitious,” Inaki Williams said. “With new signatures and younger players coming in, we’re making great strides, which is one of the most powerful aspects of the movement I’ve remembered since I joined.”
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