Boca thrashes River 5-0 in first female Superclásico

Boca Juniors routed arch-rivals River Plate 5-0 on Tuesday in the first Superclásico of Argentina's new professional women's soccer league.

Veteran Fanny Rodríguez scored a hat-trick for the hosts at La Bombonera in front of around 4,000 fans. Captain Florencia Quiñones and Fabiana Vallejos also netted a goal each, the latter a penalty.

"This is a dream day. Boca is the biggest thing there is," said Rodriguez, a lifelong Boca fan, who last season turned out for River.

"We didn't think we could make such a difference, but the result was fair. The championship is going to be tough, there are good teams," Quiñones added.

Argentina's new women's league started this past weekend, after the Argentine Football Association (AFA) announced the league's formation in March.

Women's football is on the rise in Argentina, with the national team qualifying for the latest World Cup in France for the first time in more than a decade.

The women's league began back in 1991, but at an amateur level.

The government is also bidding to host the women's World Cup in 2023. 

However, the salaries in the professional women's league are equivalent to those for men in the country's fourth division.

Though Boca and River are legends of the men's game, four out of the six last women's championships have been won by UAI Urquiza.

One former UIA player also making headlines yesterday was Macarena Sánchez, the iconic female player who launched legal action against her club for not recognising her as a professional player.

Appropriately enough Sánchez, who now plays for San Lorenzo – the first national club to offer pro contracts to women – bagged herself a goal within three minutes of her new club's match against Lanús, before netting again in the second half.

San Lorenzo ran out 3-1 winners.

– TIMES/AFP/AP