'Real revolution:' International media celebrates Eta's Union debut

It seemed as if the entire football world had their eyes on the Bundesliga on Saturday to witness Marie-Louise Eta's historic debut as head coach of Union Berlin.

The Spanish newspaper AS published a video showin Eta's arrival on the pitch as the first women to coach a men's team in one of Europe's top leagues.

Even the Argentinian sports newspaper Olé briefly featured Eta on the home page of its news portal, pushing out the preview of the Superclásico between Boca Juniors and River Plate.

"Revolution in the Bundesliga: Marie-Louise Eta makes debut as Union Berlin coach," Olé wrote. "A historic day for German football."

The Spanish newspaper Marca said: "The anticipation was immense, and a deafening roar of jubilation shook the picturesque Stadion An der Alten Försterei when Marie-Louise Eta emerged from the tunnel. Every photographer's lens was pointed at her. And that was no wonder, because they were witnessing a historic moment."

Eta was closely followed by the a swarm of photographers when she hurried to one side of the pitch for an interview with broadcasters DAZN. And they moved along with her when she crossed the pitch again to talk to Sky TV.

"She was the centre of attention. A real revolution," Olé said.

Eta, however, stressed: "It's not about me, it's about football."

Her debut wasn't all about celebrations as Union lost 2-1 to VfL Wolfsburg and extended their winless run to four games. But the players said they could already see the impact of the new coach.

"There's a new energy on the pitch. When you try to shoot on goal 26 times, you're doing a lot of things right," captain Christopher Trimmel said.

Eta was the target of several sexist remarks on social media throughout the week and was defended by Union officials.

"I don't really care if it's a man or a woman. It doesn't change the way I wanna play games," forward Ilyas Ansah said.