If you have never eaten a pupusa, you are missing out. It is a thick, hand-made tortilla filled with beans, cheese, and sometimes pork, and served with curtido, a flavourful cabbage relish, and red salsa. This delicious delicacy is a staple in El Salvador and was one of the cornerstones of Brenda Ceren’s life growing up. The other was football.
As a girl, Ceren would help her mother sell pupusas on the street in the San Salvador suburb of Quezaltepeque, but upon returning home, the topic at the dinner table was the beautiful game. Ceren’s two older brothers, Darwin and Oscar, and older sister Paola all still play professionally and have represented El Salvador at international level. Notably, Darwin has served as captain of the men’s senior team.
But these days all eyes are on the youngest of the quartet. Brenda is a member of an El Salvador women’s national team that is just one result away from reaching the final phase of Concacaf qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup™ for the first time in the country’s history. A draw away to Trinidad and Tobago on 17 April would get it done.
Currently in Liga MX Femenil at Atlas, Ceren has come a long way, and she has the ambition to go even further and help Las Cusctalecas qualify for their first global finals in 2027.
Brenda Ceren: I think it is looking like a different national team, a very good one. Unlike in previous years for El Salvador, I think there has been a significant progression. We’ve grown a lot, both personally as players and collectively as a team. We’re already competing at the highest level and that’s the most important thing.
Since coach Acuna took the helm of this ship, I think things have been different. Part of his personality is that he is a very passionate person and is always looking to find talents to integrate into the national team. He’s been with the U-17s and U-20s and us as well in the senior team. He has looked for players everywhere, in El Salvador and abroad, and I think a key point is that we have been able to integrate players, whether they are born in the US or in El Salvador, just as long as they have Salvadoran nationality and a desire to represent the country. I think we are doing things well. We’re on a good path. Obviously, I know there is a lot to go, but we have the eagerness and the enthusiasm to keep going.
I just think it’s the desire and the hunger to play well and represent the country. We’re all on the same page when we put on that blue and white shirt and we defend it to the death. That has made us grow as players and as people. I think each one of my team-mates is receptive and respectful and take each correction in the best way, so that has helped us.
We know that we have to win that match if we want to make the next round. We’ve seen them up close and we know they are a tough, strong opponent, especially at home. We know that they’ll make things tricky for us and they have a lot of strong qualities. They have very good individuals, but we’re only focused on ourselves. Soon we’ll be able to get together in El Salvador to prepare for that match and approach it in the best way possible.
Getting to the next round is our main objective. We know that there are already some world class powers there waiting, but we need to go step by step right now to be able to achieve that historic qualification. We’ve never gotten to that stage so obviously it would be a dream to do it, but we don’t want to stop there. We want to keep competing and God willing, qualify for the World Cup.
Since we were kids everyone in my family has liked football. Watching my brothers grow up and play I think motivated me to be a footballer, to play and above all to realise that I could also achieve as much as them. My two brothers, my sister and I all play professional football. We all had the opportunity to be able to develop our game and we’ve all had the privilege of representing our nation. In our house, it’s football all the time. My parents are quite happy with us and they support us a lot.
I’ll be honest with you, when I’m actually playing I don’t recall anything, but before I enter the pitch, I’m always thinking about and valuing those moments of where I come from, everything that I have sacrificed and fought for to be able to get to where I am. And once I’m on the pitch, the only thing I think about is enjoying myself and trying to carry out what the coach asks of me. It’s been a wonderful road with plenty of ups and downs, but I know God has a place for everything. Sometimes we have to go through trials to improve ourselves. I just thank God for what he has allowed me to experience and right now I’m just trying to enjoy the moment.
Yes, of course! I’ve always said that it is one of my favourite dishes, obviously since I’m Salvadoran. I would love to be able to bring that culinary delight anywhere I go. Like here in Mexico, on my birthday I celebrated by making a lot of pupusas for my team-mates so they could all try them.
Photos courtesy of FESFUT
