Why Cruz Azul broke the curse of 23 years
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It seems that these are unreal times for world football. Only in this year did the reign of Juventus in Italy end; the dupolio of champions of the Spanish league of Real Madrid-Barcelona was destroyed with the victory of Atlético de Madrid ; in France, the hegemony of Paris Saint Germain ended with the triumph of Lille and in Portugal Sporting Lisbon won for the first time in almost 20 years.
And yesterday, Cruz Azul was champion in Mexico .
This Sunday, May 30, 2021, the cement team broke with a curse of 23 years and rose as first division champion in Liga MX.
The official sale of tickets for the meeting in Cruz Azul and Santos Laguna started on Wednesday with prices from 450 to 1,200 pesos. However, the tickets ranged from 3,000 pesos to 8,000 pesos outside the Azteca Stadium . This was due to the fact that fans could only occupy 25% of the places in the Coloso de Santa Úrsula, allowing around 20,267 people.
The history of this soccer club, -which arose in Hidalgo, but which was made in Mexico City with triumphs in the 70s-, had won for the last time in the 1997 winter tournament. For decades, the ” Azul “approached the cup many times, only to fail in the final minutes of the defining matches. So much so that the word ” crosszulear “ became a word of use (and which is under review by the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language ) to talk about the moment when you make a mistake just before reaching what you want.
That is why we Mexicans (and many Latin Americans) said, half jokingly and half seriously, that the cement team had a curse. It’s not that Cruz Azul is a bad team. He has won several continental titles and regularly finishes among the best on the table. But he hadn’t raised a glass for 23 years.
But this Sunday, despite all the memes and jokes, Cruz Azul won 2-1 on aggregate against Santos Laguna de Torreón .
With goals from Luis Romo in the first leg and Cabecita Rodríguez in the second leg, the cement producers automatically earned a place in the Concachampions League.
This is how Jonathan Rodríguez’s goal was experienced at the court level, the one that earned the title for @CruzAzul , the second for La Maquina in the series and the one that the Azteca Stadium sang pic.twitter.com/JIG2iRX2gv
– Liga BBVA MX (@LigaBBVAMX) May 31, 2021
The Cruz Azul victory has some lessons that entrepreneurs can adopt for daily life.
1. Team work
It seems like a very obvious lesson when we talk about a sports team, but the reality is that Cruz Azul proved to have a more conformed team. Jesús Corona, Julio César Domínguez, Pablo Aguilar, Juan Escobar, Ignacio Rivero, Rafael Baca, Luis Romo, Pol Fernández, Orbelín Pineda, Roberto Alvarado and Jonathan ‘Cabecita’ Rodríguez were the 11 owners of the Machine who fought to give everything in the basketball court.
Special case is Jesús Corona, the team’s goalkeeper. For him, the victory is even sweeter when he is 40 years old and has triumphed against the Lagunero goalkeeper Carlos Acevedo, 25.
“It is achieved thanks to the work, the commitment of this group and it gives me great pleasure for the team, coaching staff and fans that already deserved it,” Corona told the Marca portal.
- Entrepreneurial Lesson: Fill your team with good players and trust them. And let the most experienced do their job.
2. A leader who knows the operation
Cement coach Juan Reynoso was part of the Cruz Azul team that won the final against León in 1997 when he played for the team as captain and center-back.
Peruvian by birth, but Mexican by conviction, yesterday Reynoso became the first coach to win both as a player and as a coach. He’s usually low-key, but throughout the tournament I make strategic decisions that weren’t always popular.
After a very soulless first half, Reynoso put his team on the waist so that they gave their all on the court in the second half. “Reynoso screwed up all of us (at halftime), but happy with the result, the team got up on time,” Pablo Aguilar told Marca .
For his part, Reynoso said for the Claro site that “sometimes we are not in the right place and time, one goes back in time and makes memory, players and category technicians passed by who could not have this achievement and has us in the clouds with what we achieve Life puts you where you deserve, I speak for ‘Cata’ (Domínguez), Chuy (Corona) and (Adrián) Aldrete, who I have seen them cry in hard times and today I saw them cry with joy. People from this club who are assured of their future, this championship took away their dream and today it came true. “
Entrepreneurial lesson: Get started in something you really know and trust your experience and the knowledge you have acquired in your industry. You have been given a unique perspective that, while not always obvious to others, will be based on empirical knowledge.
AN INCREDIBLE STORY ! @CruzAzul waited to repeat this postcard for 23 years and tonight, he ended the trophy drought for his cause; Jesús Corona and Julio Domínguez, the captains. pic.twitter.com/vsfetKSCuP
– Liga BBVA MX (@LigaBBVAMX) May 31, 2021
3. Have wildly loyal fans
Many of Cruz Azul’s fans were not even born in 1997 when the cement team lifted its eighth cup. However, in these 23 years many of them never left their team. They endured 23 years of frustration and teasing, but they never took off their shirt. In yesterday’s game, children, parents and grandparents cried hugging because they always trusted that they would go “for the ninth.” And they succeeded.
Entrepreneurial Lesson: Never underestimate the power of words of encouragement. Whether they are your parents, friends, partner, children or colleagues, having someone on your court will give you the house for that 90-minute game plus overtime and penalties that is entrepreneurship. Look for mentors to guide you and of course, give you a word of encouragement.
Yesterday Cruz Azul broke a curse of 23 years and shows us that we can all overcome bad spells, no matter how long they may be.
