Sofia Balbi

Sofia Balbi was born on 11 October 1989 in Montevideo, Uruguay in a middle-class family. She spent the first 14 years of her life in the Uruguayan capital before migrating to the Spanish city of Barcelona in 2003.

Sofia’s father who was involved with the banking industry in Uruguay left his country for the shores of Spain on an assignment. She has a brother named Gonzalo Bali who plays professional football and two sisters, named Pao and Mariana.

She first bumped into Luis Suarez, when she was just 13. Luis who hailed from an economically disadvantaged section of society, had shifted to Montevideo’s La Comercial locality from Salto and used to sweep the streets in and around his neighborhood.

Suarez was a 15 year old teenager when his eyes fell on Sofia. He fell head over heels in love with her the first time he saw her. She recalls going out with Luis where he splurged his earnings from sweeping the streets and the coins he picked up from the roads.

Sofia and Suarez both developed a liking for each other which gradually turned into a romantic relationship. Her parents, despite being aware that Luis could not match up to Sofia as he came from an underprivileged family, sanctioned their relationship. Suarez often used to have dinner with Sofia and her family at the latter’s home.

Her parents used to encourage Suarez to take soccer seriously and play the sport with all his heart so that he became an accomplished player in the distant future. One of Luis’s teammates from his youth soccer days had opined that Balbi’s family had practically sheltered and mentored him.

In 2003, Sofia left Uruguay for Spain and started living in Barcelona with her family while Luis continued playing for a local football club named Nacional. In 2006, Luis Suarez was signed by Dutch club FC Groningen and he shifted to Groningen, Holland. Suarez took his coach’s permission for taking leave for a couple of days so that he could see his girlfriend who was based in Barcelona.

Luis and Balbi tied the knot in 2009 and on 5 August 2010, the couple welcomed a baby daughter whom they named Delfina. In September 2013, the couple had their second child, a son named Benjamin. While the family stayed in Liverpool (when Suarez used to play for FC Liverpool), Delfina’s speech reflected a Scouse accent.

Luis Suarez donned a jersey that was imprinted with the words, “Welcome Benjamin” to celebrate the birth of his son during a fixture. Suarez’s coach at Liverpool, Brendan Rodgers, had high regards for Sofia. He said Luis’s wife played a key role in his transformation into a world-class footballer.