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The magic of football lies precisely in what happened at the El Pozuelo stadium on Sunday. Antonio Calderón and his players set out knowing that it could happen, calmly and focused only on what they could control: doing their part to beat Deportiva Minera.
Juventud de Torremolinos did their bit and thrashed Deportiva Minera 5-0 at home, but that wasn't enough to confirm promotion. Players, coaches and fans gathered on the bench to watch the last minutes of the Balompédica Linense-La Unión Atlético. Balona won (2-1) and El Pozuelo was filled with green smoke, hugs, shouts of joy, tears and smiles. Juventud de Torremolinos were, from that moment on, a bronze team for the first time in history. The battle for the lead was won by the Costa del Sol team in the last round.
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As things stand, there is a possibility that Spain's Primera RFEF division will have up to four teams from Malaga province next season. With Torremolinos' place confirmed, it's still up in the air what will happen with Antequera (who are likely to be in the play-offs for promotion to Segunda), Marbella, who have to seal their salvation, and Estepona, who will play in the promotion phase to Primera RFEF. This possibility speaks volumes about the current culture of football in Malaga.
The stadium was rarely packed out before this season. But, filled to the rafters and brimming with green and white shirts, the people understood that it was the day to be on the home team's side. Fans and workers invaded the pitch when the referee blew the final whistle to follow with uncertainty the last minutes of the match that gave the key to promotion. The stadium went from silence to absolute ecstasy. Fans and players followed one after the other, celebrating with their partners and families. Since the game was played on Mother's Day in Spain, the first team players went out accompanied by their mothers or their partners to pay tribute to them on a day that was doubly special for everyone involved.
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Things have improved nicely for Torremolinos, who three seasons ago were relegated to the Tercera RFEF and now, after two consecutive promotions, can say that they are bronze medalists. The turning point came when the Asian investment group, ACA Football Partners, based in Singapore, landed on the Costa del Sol to relaunch the club. ACA was attracted by the strategic location of Juventud de Torremolinos and the potential that Malaga province currently holds for the backers.
The project, however, follows a continuous and organic line. No drastic changes and a focus on evolution rather than revolution. The coach, Antonio Calderón, one of the great architects of this achievement, took over the team when salvation had become a difficult task and the board remained confident in him even after being relegated to the fifth division. Today he is once again reaping the rewards of his hard work.
On the pitch the players have shown themselves to be a unified team, although there is one name that stands above the rest: Fran Castillo, who with his 17 goals has become the great leader on the pitch of a team that aspired to salvation in September and who defied expectations as the season progressed. Fran Gallego, Iban Ribeiro and Servetti have also been fundamental throughout the campaign, including in the promotion match, as well as captain Isma Heredia, who lifted the Group 4 champions' trophy. Sunday was time to celebrate and on Monday there's an institutional reception at the town hall, where the mayoress will receive the town's heroes.
¡Comienza el #TorremolinosDeportivaMinera! 💚 pic.twitter.com/UPRqMLL59n
— Juventud Torremolinos CF (@JTorremolinosCF) May 4, 2025
The promotion of Juventud de Torremolinos is a prize for those fans who never stop supporting them. For those who keep working despite uncertainty of the outcome. This is how the coach explained it after achieving promotion: he encouraged his players to keep winning and doing their job even when La Unión Atlético seemed so far away. Torremolinos continued to make it three in three and La Unión, the team of former Malaga insolvency administrator Daniel Pastor, dropped key points along the way that ended up causing this blow to the standings. La Minera had nothing to play for, but Balona, in the midst of the fight for salvation, did. It was a cruel end for them, and despite winning, they were unable to avoid relegation to the Tercera RFEF.
The last matchday of the championship in Group 4 of the Segunda RFEF, with a packed timetable, was delayed due to the late arrival of Deportiva Minera's bus, which affected the other nine matches that were played on Sunday.
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