On Tuesday, June 24th, the Public University of Navarra (UPNA) will host the First Mixed Ability...
Mixed Ability football brings entertainment to MAGIC 2025
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One of the most memorable moments of the forthcoming MAGIC 2025 games will undoubtedly be the Mixed Ability football tournament. The event will feature some of the most iconic Spanish football teams, including Club Atlético Osasuna, Deportivo Alavés, and Athletic Club de Bilbao, as well as ASPACE Navarra. All these clubs are already working to support the inclusion of players with disabilities; however, for the first time, they will embrace and experience the Mixed Ability model.
Gorka Goñi Pérez, Head of Sports Activities at the Osasuna Foundation says: “Thanks to the Mixed Ability model in disciplines such as rugby, we have found that it is one of the most beautiful and enriching experiences that sport can offer. It is valuable for everyone, but especially for those without disabilities, who discover that disability is not a barrier to playing sport and that, together, with real mutual support, we can achieve great success.”
On the same lines is the statement of one of the members of the pioneering team in Mixed Ability basketball, who will now venture into football, such as Andoni Colmenero, coordinator of the Baskonia Alavés Fundazioa Foundation, who said:
“The club is very grateful and excited for this opportunity. For us, it means much more than a match: it’s a starting point for continuing to build spaces where everyone can enjoy sports without barriers. We’ve been developing Mixed Ability in basketball for a few years, but this will be the first time we’ve implemented it in football, and we hope it’s the beginning of many more experiences like this.”
The tournament will be played in a four-team friendly format, with two semifinals and a final. The winning teams will face off for the title in this first Mixed Ability Football Tournament, while the other two teams will compete for third and fourth place.
Another team entering the tournament as a strong contender is the home team CD Aspace Navarra, whose Sporting Director, Juan Francés Zubieta, said:
“For ASPACE Navarra, participating in this event reinforces our model of working on inclusion through sport in highly visible contexts. On a personal level, it represents an opportunity to continue professionalising our work and positioning inclusion as a standard, not an exception.”
