Despite his young age, Iker Ruiz del Barco has become one of the most famous football content creators in the world.
Football is a passion for millions of people around the world. In many cases, watching a couple of games a week is nothing that explains their fandom. Following the updates of their favorite team and rivals, getting information, reading interviews, visiting their social networks and being interested in their idols is something that is becoming more and more common. And, in recent years, the most romantic side of football has grown exponentially.
Ruiz del Barco has become one of the main content creators of football in the Spanish language. Despite his young age, at 24 years old he has found a way to tell stories of all kinds : well-known, epic, legendary, curious etc. Through very carefully crafted videos, he has made a name for himself on TikTok, where @elefutbol is a hit with his videos.
With a very distinguished style, these videos have spread like wildfire through the mobile phones of the young and, now, he has decided to make the leap to paper. La vuelta al fútbol en 80 historias puts in black and white the best football stories of all time with a fun and profound style. He is young, but he has been making football videos for more than twelve years, his great passion, and he worked for two years in television, specifically in Jugones. But Roberto Baggio changed his life.
In conversation with El Confidencial, Iker transmits serenity, knowledge and a desire to continue unraveling the less-known secrets of football. He is clear about his limits and the substance of the content he wants to create, where “values and tolerance” are an indispensable part of the message he wants to convey to everyone. The ball has started rolling.
QUESTION: How did the idea of writing a book come about?
ANSWER. I had been on social media for a long time, creating content that romanticized football lovers through prose and literature. I thought about what product would be good for me and I thought it would be a good idea to publish a book. I spoke with my agent, we developed the idea and the time came to execute it.
QUESTION: Which chapter did you enjoy writing the most?
ANSWER. It’s very difficult to choose just one. I really enjoyed all the stories, although some I would choose like, Jonás Gutiérrez’s journey of self-improvement , the investigation into Pichichi, the Athletic player from my city, and I also really enjoyed the friendship between Iniesta and Jarque. But, in general, I would choose all of them.
QUESTION. What is the less-known story that appears in the book?
ANSWER. There are several that are very interesting. For example, Larbi Ben Barek was the first black player to play in Spain, wearing the Atlético shirt. He was the player who died in absolute solitude in Morocco. It is a story that Pelé revealed, who said that, if you call him King, Ben Barek should be called God. Or the story of the Williams parents, which is fascinating and not known by many, although in recent years, it has become somewhat more public.
QUESTION. You have made a name for yourself among the younger audience. But for those who don’t know you, who would you say you are?
ANSWER. Well, I graduated from university, so to speak, but I have been working on sports content on YouTube for many years. I made my first videos when I was 9, because I loved creating content since I was very young. Over the years, I learned to edit and manage programs, and it was at university that I started talking about football, my true passion.
QUESTION. Why did you decide to make videos on social media?
ANSWER. I’ve always been a bit sociable person and I’m very attracted to new technologies. So when TikTok was born, I got interested in the platform. I thought it was amazing to watch a short video, be able to scroll down and continue watching more. When I started, there were few people talking about football, it seemed like a modern format that was close to young people.
QUESTION. Do you have any sports idols?
ANSWER. Well, look, I always talk about football, my great sporting idol is Rafa Nadal. Now, as a farewell to his retirement, LaLiga said a phrase that stuck with me: ‘Rafa, I hope you are reborn and become a footballer’. Professionally and personally, Nadal is an incredible example. He is always calm, gentle, sporting and fighting until the end. In fact, the event in which I was most moved was at the Australian Open in 2022, with that incredible comeback against Daniil Medvedev. When it was over, I started to cry because of the tension and the success achieved, an epic comeback in the history of sport. And, if we were to stick only to football, my great idols are Zinedine Zidane and Andrés Iniesta.
QUESTION: You have been in the media for several years. Would you like to work in one?
ANSWER. Right now, I’m not thinking about it. Maybe as a one-time contributor to a talk show or something like that, but I don’t want to have someone who tells me what to do based on interests. My experience in television taught me useful things, but also to value my creative and editorial freedom above all else. I’m not thinking about working in the media in the short term because I really like the world I’m in.