Mara Gomez may not be the first transgender woman to play professional football but she has created history by becoming the first transgender woman in Argentina to play the sport. She made her professional debut against Lanus.
Transgender women had played football in Spain, American Samoa, England and Canada, However, no such player had their presence in Argentina, where football is deeply knotted with national identity.
Before the debut, Gomez confirmed the news through Instagram where she posted a picture of her signing the contract for the play. The Argentinian Football Association also gave the conformation later.
On her social media post, Gomez declared that she was now officially a player of the highest category of Argentine soccer. The player said that there were several obstacles and the road was long for her. “….that which one day made me think that I would not be anyone, that I would never have the opportunity to be happy in my life today is reversed,” Gomez said in the instagram post.
Gomez said that she was fulfilling one of the greatest goals of life, which was thought indispensable and never going to happen.
In the instagram post, Gomez wrote, “It was not magic, it was not given away, it was not easy. There was a life of struggle, suffering, sadness; there was a life on the brink of death, a broken heart. There were many obstacles to reverting that past. Grateful to the club in which I defend the colours today@vscfem , grateful to my representative @lorenaberduladt who contained me at every moment, grateful to my family for everything, grateful to all the people who supported this change, this dream, this desire, this conquest. WE DID IT and I have no words other than gratitude. This is just beginning, today I breathe, today my soul returns to my body. Thanks a lot@lanusfem @clublanusoficial by the surprise of this beautiful I presented (they shocked me). This is the sport that we all want, THAT IT BE FOR EVERYONE.”
