28 Jun Football stars Lucy Bronze, Kelly Smith and sisters Tatiana and Silvana Flores Join Rakuten TV’s new documentary series Champions
Rakuten TV, one of Europe’s leading VOD platforms, has today announced the stars of their new sports documentary series Champions, which features six European leading women’s football players.
With women’s football enjoying a sharp rise in popularity in recent years, the documentary series will explore the highs and lows of the sport. Leading players from a selection of Europe’s top football clubs include Lucy Bronze (Manchester City), Wendie Renard (Olympique de Lyon), Alexia Putellas (FC Barcelona), Barbara Bonansea (Juventus), Julia Simic (Milán) and Stina Blackstenius (Montpellier HSC) alongside some of the sport’s greatest legends, such as Kelly Smith or Carolina Morace, and emerging talent including sisters Tatiana and Silvana Flores, Bendetta Orsi or Sonia Ouchene, as they journey through the history and the evolution of the sport, whilst reflecting on the steps that still need to be taken.
Across six episodes, cameras follow the players through their encounters, revealing the ins and outs of high-performance sport and the challenges that the champions of the European women’s football scene have faced along the long journey towards the vindication of women’s football.
Three generations of English footballers who embody the evolution of women’s football will provide their testimonies in this documentary series. As a Defenderat Manchester City and player on England national female squad Lucy Bronze’s impressive track record is highlighted by victories in the Champions League, the French League and the French Cup in her season with Olympique Lyon, and she was awarded FIFA Women’s Player of the Year in 2020. She is acclaimed for her polished technique, privileged accuracy, excellent game vision, and defensive commitment. Kelly Smith was a pioneer of women’s football, paving the way for a whole new generation of women to consider a professional future in football. Smith accumulated 117 caps for the England women’s national football team and still holds the record as England’s goalscorer with 46 goals. And the promising young players Tatiana and Silvana Flores. The Canadian-born Mexican sisters, daughters of the former Mexican soccer player Ruben Floresleft Canada to follow their dream of playing soccer in England, where they made their way through Arsenal’s youth teams.
Champions is an original documentary series produced by El Cañonazo Transmedia in association with Rakuten TV. El Cañonazo is specialised in format innovation, with extensive experience with TV production and content distribution companies, in the sports sector, for Olympic Channel, LaLiga and Adidas, among others. The documentary series is directed by Elena Carrascal, with script by Sonia Jaque, and Sylvia Cabanas as production manager.
Champions will join Rakuten Stories, the channel that embodies Rakuten TV’s original and exclusive content, with inspiring and empowering documentaries reflecting the company’s DNA including Matchday: Inside FC Barcelona, Made in Senegal, Andrés Iniesta – The Unexpected Hero, The Secrets of La Roja, Ride Your Dream, Eighteam, Break Point: A Davis Cup Story and coming soon, The Giants and Ona Carbonell: Starting Over. Rakuten Stories content is included in the FREE section of the platform.
Champions will be available exclusively and for free on Rakuten TV in summer 2021.
