Tomorrow, Benidorm will celebrate the naming of the new football fields as 'Hermanos Martínez Munuera' and 'Nerea Pérez Machado'

Benidorm City Council will hold an event tomorrow, Saturday, to pay tribute to three prominent local athletes, referees Juan and Miguel Martínez Munuera and soccer player Nerea Pérez Machado, by naming the new soccer fields at the Guillermo Amor Sports City after them. The agreement to name these fields was unanimously approved by the municipal council's plenary session last February, and "once the schedules of these three elite athletes have finished with the completion of the official competitions in which they are prominent figures," explained the city's mayor, Toni Pérez.

The mayor recalled that, as stated in the motion approved by the plenary session, "both Nerea Pérez and the Martínez Munuera brothers have achieved sporting achievements and successes throughout their careers," adding that "they are an example of dedication, effort, and perseverance for the youth of Benidorm."

He also stated that "this is a more than deserved recognition for these three athletes who have taken and continue to take the name of Benidorm to the highest level in their respective disciplines. Therefore, we understood that they should have sports facilities named after them in our city, just like other great local athletes such as Guillermo Amor, Antonio López, Liliana Steiner, and Raúl Mesa," he added. The tribute event will take place at 11:30 a.m. at Guillermo Amor Sports City. It will begin on the municipal football field formerly known as the "annex" to the Guillermo Amor Municipal Stadium, now called the "Nerea Pérez Machado Football Field" in recognition of this young female footballer from the city. It will continue on the two new 11-a-side football fields (four new 8-a-side football fields), named the "Juan and Miguel Martínez Munuera Football Fields" by both First Division referees.

Both Mayor Toni Pérez and Councilor for Sports, Javier Jordá, have invited athletes and fans from the city, especially children involved in grassroots sports, to participate in this day of tribute to Nerea, Juan, and Miguel, "three exemplary athletes who are proud to carry the name of Benidorm as their flag."

About the honorees

Last February, Benidorm City Council unanimously approved the proposal submitted by Mayor Toni Pérez for this public recognition. The motion states that "both Nerea Pérez and the Martínez Munuera brothers have achieved sporting achievements and successes throughout their careers and are examples of dedication, effort, and perseverance for the youth of Benidorm."

Born in Benidorm in January 1994, Nerea Pérez Machado began practising all kinds of sports from a young age, finally opting for soccer when the sport was still primarily associated with the male gender. Nerea persevered in her pursuit of this sport, and Vicente Mir, former coach of Valencia Mestalla, Elche Ilicitano, and Hércules CF, among others, allowed her to join Benidorm CD, where she played from the first-year Benjamín category to the second-year U12, excelling at all stages of youth soccer.

When the Valencian Football Federation's regulations didn't allow her to play with boys, Nerea joined Valencia Féminas in the 1st Regional League. After a brilliant first season, she was signed by Hércules Femenino, a team in Group IV of the National First Division.

In the 2012/2013 season, she leapt into professional football, playing for Levante UD's women's team. There, she played in the National Women's First Division, later playing for Santa Teresa de Badajoz until reaching Villarreal, where she currently plays.

During her career, she has been a member of the Valencian Women's National Team and a player for the Spanish national team. With the national team, she was called up for the finals of the U-17 World Cup in Trinidad and Tobago, where the national team achieved third place, as well as for the finals of the UEFA European Women's Under-19 Championship in Türkiye, where they finished runners-up. In addition to her extensive career with these clubs, as well as in various categories of the Spanish national team, Nerea has also been a referee in the regional first division.

Also, the Martínez Munuera brothers, Juan and Miguel, have a career linked to football but with a very different vocation.

Juan was born in Benidorm in July 1982. From a very young age, he was involved with football and refereeing, being selected as a referee in 2011 by the UEFA Young Talent Program. At the beginning of the 2013-2014 season, after three seasons in the second division, he made his debut as a referee in the first division on August 19, 2013, and has now refereed more than 209 matches in this category.

Juan has been an international referee since January 1, 2015, and is currently one of the best referees in the VAR function. Likewise, in 2015, he was awarded the "Golden Whistle" of the First Division, an award presented annually by the National Referees Committee. Previously, in 2013, he was recognised with  "Vicente Acebedo" Trophy awarded by the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).

Miguel Martínez Munuera, born in Benidorm in April 1986 and the younger brother of Juan, has worked as an assistant referee, making his debut in the Spanish First Division on September 13, 2009.

Since January 1, 2015, he has served as an international assistant referee, highlighting his extensive resume of refereeing roles, which includes matches in the Copa del Rey, the Spanish Super Cup, the Conference League, the Europa League, and the Champions League, as well as a total of 25 international matches for national teams.

The motion highlights that "both brothers have spent 32 and 25 years, respectively, dedicated to their passion, football, bearing with pride, like Nerea Pérez Machado, the name of Benidorm wherever their vocation and profession take them, being an example of dedication, effort, and perseverance for the youth of Benidorm."