Spanish footballers apologize for the haka: they still have a lot to learn

The apology followed more than a week after the Spanish team released a video in which four players performed a haka, a ritual dance of New Zealand Maori. Everyone is free to perform the famous haka, as long as there is respect and understanding for the meaning behind it.

“We were only in New Zealand for a few days. Now we know how important it is for Maori,” Andrés said on Monday. She asked the locals for forgiveness. He was accepted. Players also received an explanation from Maori about Matariki, a new national holiday in honor of the New Year celebration according to Maori.

Not only Spanish, but also Dutch football players have been discredited by a video of a haka. The KNVB took the video offline “out of respect”, but also said it was not about the famous dance, but a physical part of a workout that was “aimed at evoking the inner strength of the core from the body”. Soccer players Merel van Dongen, who audibly shouted “haka” in the video, later apologized. She said she never intended to hurt anyone.

The Women’s World Cup kicks off this week in New Zealand and Australia. The Orange will fly from Sydney to Tauranga base camp in New Zealand on Tuesday.