The Esplá family saga

“The Esplá: A dynasty of bullfighters who marked the history of Alicante”.

In Alicante’s bullfighting scene, there are several dynasties with roots and tradition. The most famous, as we have already seen, is that of the Manzanares. The most famous but not the only one. The Blaus, the Olivers, the “rencos”, the Escuderos… have brought glory and honor to the bullfighting of ‘La Terreta’, but none has been as fruitful, long-lived and prolific as that of the Esplás, because, to this day, it is composed of up to five links, three of which have become bullfighters.

These are their names and this is their story:

Francisco Esplá Vicente (Paquito Esplá)

Francisco Esplá Vicente (Paquito Esplá) (1924 – 2017). Novillero and later a bullfighting businessman and promoter. He is the founder of the dynasty. As a bullfighter, he debuted with picadors in “his” Alicante in 1944 and the following year in the Monumental de Las Ventas in Madrid. He retired from the bullrings in 1954 before founding the first Bullfighting School in his city, where he taught classes in a small square located in the Los Ángeles neighborhood. Although his career was brief and he did not take the alternative, his legacy was decisive in continuing the longest lineage of bullfighters made in Alicante.

Luis Francisco Esplá Mateo

Luis Francisco Esplá Mateo (1957). Firstborn of Paquito Esplá. He is the most important member of the saga. Long bullfighter, complete fighter, he took the alternative in Zaragoza in 1976 and headed the famous poster of banderillero bullfighters of the 80s, which also included Víctor Mendes and Vicente Ruiz “El Soro”. He always showed his predilection for rescuing and dusting off old fortunes, he has four Puertas Grandes in Las Ventas (1982, in the famous “Corrida del Siglo”, 1999, 2001 and 2009, the afternoon of his farewell from this square, when he immortalized the bull “Beato” of Victoriano del Río).

Juan Antonio Esplá Mateo

Juan Antonio Esplá Mateo (1960). Son of Paquito and brother of Luis Francisco, who was the godfather of his alternative in 1978, in the bullring of Palma de Mallorca. He even confirmed his doctorate four years later in the Las Ventas square. His quites by colleras were frequent alongside his brother, even his pairs of banderillas in duo. Without becoming a figure, he maintained great dignity in the bullrings for a decade, being part of that second deck of banderillero bullfighters in which José Luis Palomar, Morenito de Maracay or Nimeño II, among others, also appeared

Alejandro Esplá Tarruella

Alejandro Esplá Tarruella. (1983). Son of Luis Francisco Esplá, from whose hands he took the alternative at the Feria de Hogueras in 2010. He embarked on his artistic career after having graduated in Advertising and Public Relations. As a novillero, except for Las Ventas, he stepped on all the cosos of repercussion, among them Valencia, Sevilla, Pamplona, Zaragoza… not so as a matador, where his performances were diminished to the point of announcing his retirement from the bullrings in 2018.

Santiago Esplá Galván

Santiago Esplá Galván (1995). Son of Juan Antonio Esplá, he is so far, the last link in the dynasty. He debuted with picadors in Calasparra in the 2019 season and three years later he presented himself in Alicante, where he left on shoulders after cutting two ears of a novillo from Zacarías Moreno. In recent months he has prepared a documentary about the life of his grandfather, the founder of the saga, to commemorate the centenary of the birth of a modest and simple man who nevertheless holds one of the most solid vertices of Alicante’s bullfighting.

Review of what happened that afternoon - 26 June 2022

Santiago Esplá stood out for his personality in front of the fifth bull, which was awarded a lap of the ring. The dynasty bullfighter gave him the most emotional bullfight of the afternoon, which was very well received by the audience. He put banderillas with courage and tenacity to both bulls and was very varied with the cape.

José Miguel Arruego

Bullfighting journalist

RESERVE TICKETS BULLFIGHTING ALICANTE

Make sure you get the best seat for the bullfighting fair of Las Hogueras de San Juan de Alicante 2024. Servitoro official ticket office for bullfighting shows.

BUY TICKETS

Libro toro: What is a bullfight?

Aquí tienes una versión corregida y mejorada del anuncio:

“Is it your first time attending a bullfight? Elevate your experience at the Alicante Bullring with the comprehensive guide, “TORO”. This book provides a detailed walkthrough of a bullfight’s progression. In a mere 10 minutes, you can transform from a novice to a connoisseur in the art of bullfighting.”