GAELIC SPORTS WORLD Issue 28 – June 20, 2015 | Page 38

IBERIA REGION JUNE 18, 2015 MADRID CHAMPIONSHIP DOUBLE REPEAT .... BUT, ... Iberia reigning champions Madrid Harps ladies and men’s Gaelic football teams completed a further double Iberian Championship victory at the last round of the competition on June 6th at Valencia in Spain but with the rise of the Galician sides, will the trend continue? The Madrid club along with Barcelona have been the dominant forces in the Iberian Championship over the past Madrid ladies and men’s players at the Fillos de Breogan tournament in May. Photo courtesy of Juan E number of years but this year Xta MarineRecon/Facebook. in both ladies and men’s football they were pushed all the way from the up and coming ladies and 13 men’s teams in 2014 to a mammoth 12 ladies teams from the northwest in Galicia. and 19 men’s teams this year. The influence of the Galicia Gaelic football revolution is spreading throughout Spain with new sides this year in the men’s such as Sitges Eagles, BIG INCREASE Dorna, València Murciélagos, and St. Enda’s. In the space of 12 months this growing and important championship in Europe has gone from 4 rounds last year COMPETITIVE LADIES CHAMPIONSHIP to five this season. The increase in the number of teams in the Iberia Championship, largely due to the surge of This season saw the 11th Men’s Iberian Gaelic Football interest amongst locals in Gaelic Football in the autonoChampionship and 8th Ladies and began in March at Mamous region of Gaelic, has gone from a very respectable 7 drid. The men’s competition is based on 11 a-side with 38