The Pride of Vallekas

David Méndez grew up in Vallecas, is 39 and has been a member of Rayo since he was 17. You can follow him on Twitter: @davidvk78 . How long have you been a fan of Rayo and what made you support them in the first place? I was always keen about Rayo since my childhood, but because of my father I also supported Real Madrid when I was a child. He is a Real Madrid fan and he used to take my brothers and I to the Santiago Bernabéu. Later when I was a teenager I lost my interest in Real Madrid while my interest in Rayo increased more and more. Describe your first visit ever to Vallecas and the stadium? How would you describe the fans in the stadium, and how intimidating is the stadium for opposition fans and players? I don’t remember which it was my first visit to Vallecas’ stadium exactly. I guess it would be when I was at school and I was about 8 or 9 years old, by that time Rayo used to distribute tickets in the schools of the neighborhood and I got several tickets because other ki...

José María Ruiz-Mateos was the head and main shareholder of Nueva Rumasa - the company that owned Rayo and other companies - mainly specializing in dairy products. (He wasn't the president of Rayo though - his wife, Teresa Rivero, was Rayo's president). In early 2011, the directors announced a debt of over 700 million euros, that it was on the verge of bankruptcy and that staff wouldn't be paid. And the players were visibly angry about it - captain Míchel assured the press that the club would continue fighting on the pitch, but the day after the announcement was made, six key players didn’t attend training. Veteran midfielder José María Movilla spoke on radio station SER about the situation, about the fact that he had only received seven of the last eighteen months of pay, about the fact that there were a few players who couldn't even afford car repairs. When Rayo Vallecano were about to earn promotion to La Liga despite all the odds - the players not being paid, ...

Follow Edyta on Twitter here . A bit about yourself and your background I’m from Poland, born and raised in Cracow and a Rayo fan since the 2012-13 season. I'm an active commentator of Rayo in social networks, and also a fan of Spanish football, Spanish language, and the culture of Spanish-speaking countries. I’m an IT graduate but my passion is journalism. I’ve been cooperating with goldeplata.com and timejust.es, occasionally I have a column in Rayo Total. I’ve just been accepted at the Spanish Philology department. How long have you been a fan of Rayo and what made you support them in the first place? I’ve been supporting Rayo since the 2012-13 season. It was the first season of Paco Jémez as Rayo’s coach, and finished with the historical eighth place in the ranking, which would have advanced us to Europe had we been given the licence. I was impressed by the team’s ultra offensive style of play, but most of all I was amazed by how combative they were, especially in a gam...