Morante did not refuse to fight in Bilbao “until they played the anthem”: the video is from 2021 Maldita.es
It has spread in social networks Y websites a video in which, supposedly, the bullfighter Morante de la Puebla would have refused to fight in the Bilbao bullring until they “played the national anthem as required”, according to different publications.
Nevertheless, The video belongs to a bullfight by the Sevillian bullfighter in El Puerto de Santa María in 2021. In addition, Morante did not fight on August 27 in Bilbao as some users indicate, but The 26 on the occasion of the ‘Corridas Generales 2022’. According to what they tell us from the Plaza de Toros de Bilbao, that day the national anthem did not sound either *.
The video was taken in El Puerto de Santa María (Cádiz) in 2021
The video in question circulates on networks with the explanation: “Today Morante has refused to fight in Bilbao until they played the national anthem as required, and in the end they have not had another because otherwise there would be no bullfight.”
However, the viral video does not correspond to the August 26 bullfight in Bilbao in which Paco Ureña and Alejandro Talavante also fought. Estefania Garcia, head of communication at the Bilbao Bullring, explained to cursed.es: “The anthem did not sound. Morante neither refused nor asked for it. All the music that plays in the square is organized in advance by the music band, in this case the Bilbao municipal band, and here it is a tradition that the pasodoble “Club Cocherito” plays during the paseillo. In addition, in no specialized media or blog that has covered the bullfight (1, two, 3) nothing is said about this supposed event.
On the other hand, we can see the comparison of the Plaza de Toros de BIVA Vista Alegre in Bilbao with the image of the broadcast video. These do not match:
After reading various comments on Twitter, such as the publication of the journalist Juanma Lametand carry out a comparison of images, we have been able to verify from cursed.es that the video actually belongs to a bullfight of this bullfighter that took place in El Puerto de Santa María (Cádiz) on August 7, 2021. If we compare a photograph taken that day by Lourdes de Vicente With a capture of the video, we can see how the suit of lights that Morante wore that day coincides, in addition to other details of the square such as the state of the red paint or the “PR” symbol on the burladero. On the other hand, we see that most of the attendees wear a mask, while the photographs of the bullfight this August 2022 in Bilbao show that this was not the case.
If we search specialized blogs for articles written about that bullfight in El Puerto de Santa María in 2021, yes there are references to the anthem of Spain which sounded before the event began. For example, the blog of the same bullring wrote: “Before the paseíllo, the chords of the National Anthem of Spain sounded”. However, the person in charge of communication at the Plaza de Toros de Bilbao tells cursed.es that “there is no obligation for the national anthem to be played before a bullfight.”
Lastly, even though a tweet spread with the video was published on August 27 stating that it had been recorded that same day, it is false that Morante had fought in Bilbao during that day, the bullfight took place the day before.
Therefore, it is a hoax that Morante refused to go out to fight until the Spanish anthem sounded in the Bilbao bullring. The video was recorded in 2021 in Puerto de Santa María (Cádiz).
*This article has been updated on 08/30/2022 to add the statements of Estefania Garcia, head of communication at the Vista Alegre Bullring in Bilbao
First publication date of this article: 08/29/2022
