Mexican actor Diego Luna paraded this Thursday on the red carpet of ‘Mexico 86’, the film he stars in, and took the opportunity to point out that FIFA, the organization responsible for giving birth to the next World Cup, which kicks off on June 11, “gives peace awards to the most warlike presidents”.
“Who can tell me or is going to tell me about FIFA’s honorability?” the interpreter replied to EFE in reference to the presentation of the World Cup organization’s Peace Prize to U.S. President Donald Trump.
After his compatriot and colleague Gael García Bernal’s criticism of the “reputation” of soccer’s governing body at the last Cannes Film Festival and the latest words with which director Alejandro González Iñarritu described the organization as a “mafia”, Luna is clear that “people who like soccer are not invited to the stadiums”.
Diego Luna’s criticism of FIFA
“(The World Cup) is being held in a country that is fighting with every country it can, that does not thank the Latino community (…) if there is soccer in the United States it is because of the Latino community,” defended the 46-year-old artist.
He also pointed out that Bernal’s words “were not a joke”, but “a clear fact” about the functioning of the head of international soccer.
“They have only given one, but with that one FIFA has already shown the rigor behind the selection of the winners,” he said.
For the actor of films such as ‘Rudo y Cursi’ (2008), it is “very complex to understand” what is happening with the organization of the next World Cup, the first to be divided into three venues: Mexico, Canada and the United States, the latter dominating the number of matches, registering 78 out of 104.
In the film, Luna plays Martín de la Torre, an official of the Mexican Soccer Federation (FEMEXFUT) who manages to hold a World Cup in 1986, although he will do so through bribes to other countries and various disputes with rival United States over the organization.
More than 40 years after the celebration of that World Cup in Mexico, Luna considers that “there are many parallels” between the celebration of that championship and the one that will kick off at the Mexico City Stadium (formerly the Azteca Stadium).
Secondary characters affected
In the film, directed by Gabriel Ripstein, actress Karla Souza plays Martín’s partner, a woman who is not interested in soccer, but is dragged down by corruption and wrongdoing.
“(The World Cup) tries to cover up situations in the country, and pretend that they are not happening,” comments the artist, known for her participation in ‘Nosotros los nobles’ (2013).
He also gives as an example that, while the country was “still in rubble” after the 1985 earthquake, the most catastrophic in Mexico’s recent history, men like Martin were still more concerned about the World Cup.
Following the screening of the film in selected theaters in Mexico, prior to its release on Netflix on June 5, players such as Hugo Sánchez, played by Memo Villegas in the film, were not happy with its representation and described some of the stories told in the film as “lies”.
Despite the criticism, Ripstein defended the production and assured that “it is not a documentary, but a work of fiction” and specified that the incorporation of a character based on Hugo is nothing more than “a tribute”.
“I never tire of saying it, he is the best soccer player this country has ever had. He is a man of brutal talent, there has never been another Mexican player like him,” commented Ripstein, reported Agencia EFE, playing down the controversy.
Find out more at ‘QueOnnda.com’.
