‘LaLiga Rise’, the documentary about the promotion playoffs to LaLiga Santander told by its protagonists

After 42 tightly-contested games in LaLiga SmartBank, one of the most competitive and unpredictable competitions in Europe, the four teams who just missed out on an automatic promotion place fought for the one remaining promotion spot via the LaLiga playoffs. LaLiga broadcast partners around the world will premiere the special ‘LaLiga Rise’, documentary in which this frantic race to make the leap to LaLiga Santander was lived by its protagonists: Girona FC, UD Almería, CD Leganés and Rayo Vallecano.

Through numerous interviews, legends of each club and even anonymous fans of the four competing clubs, viewers will experience the atmosphere, the nerves and the passion with which the playoffs are lived across the two-legged semi-finals and final.

Delfí Geli, the current President of Girona FC, allows viewers inside the inner sanctum of the club in the hours before these crucial games. The club’s Coach Francisco receives the surprise support of his nieces and nephews and his firefighter brother, all of them from UD Almería: the Catalan club’s opponents in the semi-final. Meanwhile the Girona legend, Albert Serra, along with the team’s number one fan, Juanola, introduce Besalú, one of the most beautiful towns in Spain.

As Almería UD pursue their dream, the documentary introduces winger José Corpas, a revelation in last season’s LaLiga SmartBank, the club’s ex-Coach Fran Fernández and the club’s long-serving Kitman, Bernardo, who entertains the squad with old romantic ballads.

CD Leganés meanwhile share the nerves and worries of the couple who own the club: Victoria Pavón and the majority share-holder Felipe Moreno, while exploring their contrasting points of view. The club’s forward-looking digital department shares its approach and the captain of their last promotion, Mantovani, explains the miracle of the Virgin of Butarque. Finally, Fernando, the last farmer in Leganés, reveals the origins of the club’s nickname ‘The cucumber growers’.

From Rayo Vallecano, Portuguese forward Bebe’s trials and tribulations are documented during the club’s promotion fight.  Jesús Diego Cota, the legendary ‘One Club Man’ of the Vallecas club, also gives a pre-game pep talk. Another illustrious Rayo figure, Julián Huerta, reveakes how his family founded the club in 1924, while the current President Raúl Martín Presa explains how important the team has been in helping a previously troubled community to progress and develop. In a frantic finale viewers share the Rayo keeper Alberto’s last moments as a professional footballer, culminating in a joyous celebration at Madrid’s Assembly Fountain.