APARO

 

Oviedo, November 19, 2012.

Dear Real Oviedo fans,

 

Back in 2003, when our beloved team were on the brink of liquidation, it would have been hard to imagine the way ahead would be so long, so full of difficulties and riddled with so many heartaches and disappointments. But eventually, the moment has come to address you all without having to ask for anything in exchange.

 

Today, we just wish to express our gratitude for your wholehearted support, both in good and in  hard times; because whenever we needed you (fans, members of supporters clubs , companies…) we always found somebody on whose support we could count, and receiving encouraging words to carry on. Thank you for helping us rise again each and every time a blow made us plunge into despair. THANK YOU FOR YOUR LOYALTY TO REAL OVIEDO. We needed you on many occasions, and all through these years you have been there.

 

We have set an example of union, fight, effort, work, and, above all, perseverance. We can hold our heads high, as we can say that we have turned our club into a legend in the world of football. From a purely sporting point of view we may not be the best team in the world, but morally, we feel we are; because no other team in our situation has a social mass capable of gathering 30,000 people to attend a fourth-tier match, of keeping an average of more than 10,000 season ticket holders, after wandering in the wilderness for ten years, playing in third and fourth-tier stadiums. We feel honored when we remember that you volunteered to help when the team needed us to remove the snow off the pitch, so that the match could be played. You went to Requexon training facilities to clean them and fix them up, so that they could be ready for the start of the season. You turned up as volunteers at home matches to help organize the access of people into the stadium. Thanks to a great many of you, money could be collected to allow the kids from our Youth Academy to compete beyond the Asturian and Spanish borders in different tournaments…and so many more things that we may fail to mention, but have definitely entered our/your souls to stay. Because you, Real Oviedo fans, can be very proud of having taken part in them, having lived and enjoyed them.

 

Needless to say, all these things need organization, cooperation and hard work. That is why we wish to THANK all the Supporters Clubs that make up this Association; because they were always ready and willing to help whenever we needed them; thank you as well to the different Supporters Clubs not belonging to our Association, who proved their unconditional love for our team. And to all Real Oviedo fans who do not belong to any Supporters Club, but by no means did they show any lack of involvement and commitment. Our gratitude as well toward Real Oviedo Fans Association “Espiritu 2003”, and especially to the Supporters Group SM94

 

Thank you all, from the bottom of our hearts

 

We would also like to thank the institutions that have backed us up during such difficult moments, helping and working together, making it possible for the club to be alive today. Thank you to all those public and anonymous Real Oviedo fans to be numbered in the thousands, scattered worldwide, and who have donated a small bit of yourselves to give us the heart and inspire us to carry on, in spite of the harsh economic crisis. Thank you to the press, – with a very special mention to Sid Lowe; for it was thanks to him that we achieved such great support away from Spain- whether local, national or international, for the coverage given (some were always there, others when we most needed them). Thank you to all football professionals, sportspeople in general and sporting entities that somehow helped with the capital increase. And, again, thank to you Real Oviedo fans for getting everybody working to save this club via social networks, or contacts, or walking up and down the streets to get more shareholders. Working together we avoided the club’s liquidation, and no doubt, that will go down in our history.

 

But it is not only you. It is also them. We cannot forget about them today. They left us, they passed away, to another world (even bluer than ours) while dreaming of a better future for their club. That is why we would also like to dedicate these lines to those “Oviedistas” who departed this life, and who will live forever in our hearts. We would particularly like to make mention of Armando Barbón, and also Chus (De Labra restaurant) and Tensi. We will never forget you.

 

Naturally, we cannot obviate Don Carlos Slim, whose investment in our club is most appreciated. The only thing we can say to him now is that we have put our cards on the table. Our aces are hope, thrill, loyalty to a feeling which is unique to us, our love for Real Oviedo . And we feel proud to keep a wild card: Our Youth Academy. Now, place your bets, and may the best win. May real Oviedo win.

We would also like to thank the current Real Oviedo Board and club employees for their constant efforts and for the way they worked to save a feeling, to keep Real Oviedo alive. Only those of us who were close to you, know the difficult moments you had to cope with, and the professionalism, strength of mind and objectivity you faced up to them with. For these reasons, THANK YOU AGAIN.

 

And last, but not least, one more thing: The first step has been taken, and now it is time for the most difficult part: we have to consolidate this. That is why we must keep on writing the History of a club which is much more than that: It is a feeling, it is our love for Real Oviedo

 

 

Hala Oviedo!!

 

 

The Board of the Association of Real Oviedo’s Supporters Clubs (APARO)

Escrito por admin