Excitement builds in South Africa ahead of El Clasico

“It’s very difficult to call El Clasico this year,” says Carol Tshabalala, the host of SuperSport’s weekly football show Backpages in South Africa while in conversation with www.laliga.es. “Obviously Real Madrid have the edge coming into the game in terms of form but anything can happen. These games are like that, every year. And that’s why we love them.”

“Barcelona are a very solid unit, especially in the midfield,” she continues. “They need a convincing win in order to peg back Real Madrid in the league table and that’s why I think they’ll edge it. Although, I must admit that it’s hard for me to be objective… I am a Barcelona fan!”

Tshabalala, who will host the El Clasico screening event organised by LaLiga in Johannesburg’s Nelson Mandela Square on Saturday afternoon, says that the global reach of El Clasico has seen the profile of Spanish football grow considerably not only in South Africa but across the African continent in recent years. It’s something she’s seen first-hand.

“Barcelona and Real Madrid do a great job of showcasing all the talent that’s in LaLiga,” she says. “Interest obviously peaks intensely during the week of a Clasico and fans want to find out more about the other teams, who they’ve played and how they’re all doing. It’s catch-up time!”

SuperSport, which has covered Spanish football for over a decade, has a 24-hour channel dedicated to LaLiga and broadcasts all of its fixtures. With interest growing by the day, the network is now looking to add to its weekly magazine show, something that Tshabalala believes is key to the league’s growth in Africa. “Extending the scope of our midweek show would be a great opportunity to focus on all the sides in the league,” she says. “Especially those like Atletico Madrid and Sevilla that have given Barcelona and Real Madrid a run for their money.”

“In Africa we tend to support personalities,” she continues. “African stars in particular grab our attention, players like Samuel Eto’o and Yaya Toure at Barcelona and Mahamadou Diarra and Geremi Njitap at Real Madrid. Some years ago our very own Benni McCarthy played at Celta and that really helped raise their profile. What will really help to push LaLiga’s growth among our viewers in the long run will be the presence of African stars on other teams.”