Juanma Moreno sent a public message on Sunday to Málaga CF and Unión Deportiva Almería as the two clubs prepared for the playoff final that will decide who moves up to Primera División. Posting on his official X account, he wished both sides luck and called the tie a highly exciting one.
Moreno, speaking as president of the Junta de Andalucía in functions, framed the match in simple terms: it is a chance for one Andalusian club to reach LaLiga EA Sports, and for the other to fall short at the last step. “It is an extremely exciting tie. Let’s live it with passion and sportsmanship. Andalucía will have one more team in the top tier of Spanish football,” he said in the message.
That is why the appeal landed today. The final is not just another fixture; it is the last hurdle in the playoff de ascenso a Primera División, and the result will decide whether Málaga CF or Unión Deportiva Almería joins the country’s top flight. For supporters, the stakes are immediate and concrete: promotion for one, disappointment for the other, with no second leg to soften the blow.
Before the match, the ayuntamientos de Málaga y Almería also issued a joint call for respect, coexistence and sportsmanship from both fan bases. They described the game as a source of pride for both cities because two Andalusian teams are involved, and said Málaga and Almería share a Mediterranean and Andalusian identity that should be reflected in the stands and on the streets.
That civic warning gives the day its edge. The public message is about celebration, but the need to ask for calm shows how quickly a big sporting occasion can spill beyond the pitch. The clubs may be chasing promotion, but the way the crowd behaves will shape how the night is remembered just as much as the scoreline.
What comes next is straightforward and unforgiving: one of the two teams will complete the climb to Primera División, and the other will not. For Juanma Moreno, the message is already on record; for the clubs, the answer will come from the result of the final itself.
