When Las Fallas became Valencia's first big cycle (and of the season)

When and why did this trend reverse?

In the past, the July Fair was the great bullfighting event in Valencia. It was, above the Fallas which served as an aperitif and complement to what, around San Jaime, became the big event of each season in the city of the Turia. Now, however, St. Joseph is the main event in the Levantine capital, while the July festivities have been relegated to a luxurious weekend. When and why did this trend reverse? Let us try to explain it.

First of all, we should point out that the two movements were not parallel: First the Fallas Fair began to grow, an event that took place in 1979, with the arrival of the Camará / Pedrés partnership at the Monleón bullring. The previous year, the Jardón company had staged four bullfights in March, while the Camará brothers together with the matador Pedro Martínez “Pedrés” announced nine (six bullfights, two novilladas and one rejones event) in their debut at the helm of the building.

That early edition was a great success among the bullfighters. Emilio Muñoz and Manolo Sales were awarded the alternative during the fair, while Paquirri, Dámaso González, Ángel Teruel, were carried out on shoulders two afternoons each, and among the novilleros, Paco Ojeda and Luciano Núñez excelled, as did Manuel Vidrié on horseback. The crowds turned out in good numbers, there were five full houses, two of which were sold out, and the first stone was laid to institutionalise Las Fallas as the first major fair of the season.

Until 1983, both fairs coexisted with more or less the same number of shows, although there was a tendency to increase the number of spectators in March, while it was more difficult to fill the bullring during the month of July. The downturn in the July Fair came in 1983 (five bullfights, two novilladas and one rejones). The norm was nine or ten bullfights and a couple of novilladas, although this figure had dropped somewhat in previous years.

It was the same company that decided to invest in the growth of Fallas (Camará / Pedrés) that cut back on shows that July in view of the new forms of entertainment that were beginning to impose themselves on society. This was a trend that continued in 1985, the year of self-management, and in the years to come, with the Lozano family as the new businessmen.

“Sorismo” was at its peak (the idol of Foios took the alternative in the Fallas of 1982), and the local fans got used to going to the bullfights to see their bullfighter for San José. Although they also responded when he was announced for San Jaime, the tickets for the rest of the bullfights in July were not as buoyant as they had been four months earlier, during the Fallas bullfighting season.

Several years later came Ponce, who fought one on one with the Foios bullfighter in several very successful seasons, with a lot of competition in the ring and huge profits at the box office. In addition, Manzanares senior, who also had a great line-up in this bullring, was the most demanded bullfighter by the Levantine fans.

However, at the end of the 90’s, a serious knee injury forced El Soro to say goodbye to the bullrings and although Ponce held the national and regional crown with great authority, the Feria de Julio once again suffered. Nowadays, you can still enjoy the great summer spectacle of the desencajonada, and Nautalia has even managed to get the big names to come back to Valencia at this time and bring them together in a weekend of major attraction, in addition to the novilladas and the corrida which gives the “bullfighting” touch to the festival. But never again did San Jaime compete with Fallas as the main bullfighting attraction of the year.