As if Valencia hasn’t had to deal with a lot already, barely surviving relegation in LaLiga, incidents of racism from their fans, and now a major rat problem. La Mestalla which opened in 1923 is considered one of the most historic stadiums in Spain, but recently the type of food their fans are consuming is leading to the infestation in and around the grounds.
According to The Sun, Valencia is asking their fans to stop the consumption of sunflower seeds during matches. The sunflowers are known as pipas and apparently, the club has done a poor job of cleaning up the stadium after matches and the discarded shells have been left there.
These shells have attracted hundreds of rats, and as a result the club will stop the sale of the pipas at the stadium. The team will not stop fans from consuming their own sunflowers but will request that fans bring a disposable bag and that they are discarded in the proper area.
Valencia’s cleaning equipment also an issue
To make matters worse with their rat problem, the club has received many complaints from locals about the noise their cleaning equipment makes when cleaning the stands.
The new plan to “clean up” La Mestalla begins for the Taronja Trophy match on Saturday against Premier League side Aston Villa and later continue throughout the season.
