CROWNED. Mexican Raúl Allegre (left) won twice with the Giants / @ raulallegre
American football is the discipline par excellence in the United States. No matter the condition, the NFL has come to any corner of the country to tie up as many fans as possible. But its expansion, unlike other high-impact sports in the nation, has not been as striking.
When compared to MLB baseball or NBA basketball, the NFL does not have as many followers outside the North American territory, but that does not detract from a league envied for its organization and development.
From Latin American territory there has been a parade of athletes who, contrary to what the traditional sports of their respective countries dictate, have been able to settle in the NFL.
The first of all
Cuba, a country characterized by the growth of athletes linked to baseball, volleyball and athletics, was curiously the first Latin American nation to lead one of our own to professional American football.
The NFL Hall of Fame record shows that Ignacio Molinet played in the 1927 season with the Frankford Yellow Jackets. Recognized as a fullback, the Cuban saw action in nine commitments, an internship that was limited to that year.
The first champion
Just eight years later, Latin America celebrated its first champion. It was the Mexican Aldo Richins, who only participated in one game with the Detroit Lions. Even so, the discipline’s history books have him on the Michigan squad for that calendar.
The first immortal
A Central American, Steve van Buren, appears in the records as the first Latino to be inducted into the League’s Hall of Fame. The Honduran, who became champion in the 1948 and 1949 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, played for eight seasons with the Pennsylvania team.
The running back was a fixture each week for his team, surpassing the average of 80 rushing yards per game in four seasons.
In 1948 he was the great figure in the championship game by starring in the only touchdown of the duel against the Arizona Cardinals (7-0).
Outstanding
Raúl Allegre is considered one of the most important Latinos in the NFL. For many, a well-known voice on the ESPN sports network, the Mexican was a man of regular use throughout 18 years in the league.
Two-time champion, Allegre made his debut for the Baltimore Ravens in 1983; however, a year later he came to the Indianapolis Colts. With much to prove, the Mexican went on to defend the colors of the New York Giants in 1986, a box with which he was crowned on a couple of occasions.
Talented brothers
Despite the fact that Argentina has among its main disciplines rugby, for the Grammar family American football was a true passion. That ambition led the brothers Martín and Guillermo to play in the NFL.
The former had a more successful career, once winning the uniform of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, an organization with which he was for six seasons. Recognized kicker, the southerner came to lead the statistics of field goals scored in 2002.
In the Super Bowl era, Martin owns the fifth-highest ERA among kickers during the playoffs, at 92.9%.
His brother toured the league between 2001 and 2004, three of those years with the Cardinals and one of the Miami Dolphins.
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