- Aroa González has been combining elite rugby with her job at SEAT for the past 15 years
- The captain of the Spanish national women’s team is facing her possible last World Championship
- Three-time European champions, the so-called ‘Lionesses’ will be battling for the title beginning 9 August
Martorell, 04/08/2017. – It’s 7 pm and Aroa González has just finished a national league rugby match she has played with her team, INEF Barcelona. She plays in the hooker position, the same as when she is the captain of the Spanish national women’s team, which is known as the ‘Lionesses’. With just enough time to shower and have supper, this Catalan native from L’Hospitalet de Llobregat then drives to the SEAT factory in Barcelona, where she begins her shift at 10 pm. Week after week for more than a decade, this team captain has balanced her passion for rugby and elite competition with her job at SEAT.
“Rugby is everything to me, it has made me who I am. It’s taught me a lot of values that have helped me through life”. These words were spoken by a standout player in Spanish women’s rugby, who we joined in the team’s final training session prior their debut at the World Championship in Ireland, a 12-nation competition of the best teams that is kicking off next 9 August.
Wearing jersey number two, she is the leader of the fifteen ‘lionesses’ that make up the national team. The lioness on their Spanish Federation jersey is a symbol of their strength. And just by chance, this feline also accompanies Aroa at work, as she participates in making the SEAT Leon in the metal Press workshop in SEAT’s factory in Barcelona.
With a total of 69 appearances, captain Aroa is the most-capped player at official matches with the national team. She is a three-time European champion, has participated at three World Championships and achieved a third place win in the Six Nations rugby tournament. The World Championship trophy is the only one missing from her long list of victories: “This will probably be my last competition with Spain and I’m really looking forward to taking the team to the final win”, she admits.
