Gramatica, NFL’s diehard soccer fan
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Inside a stadium packed to capacity, a ball is waiting to be struck. A kicker is poised to strike it and when he does, making perfect contact with the top of his foot to send it arcing between the posts, it’s a goal!
That could be the description of a winning penalty, of course, but in this case it depicts a decisive act in the game of American football, the most popular sport in the USA. A large chunk of the American population will settle down this Sunday to watch the season-ending Super Bowl.
In days gone by, there was a chasm between the sport Americans call “soccer” and the distant cousin they adore so much. Times have changed, however, with the two sports having grown significantly closer to each other.
And who better to explain the ever-stronger ties between football and American football than Martin Gramatica, a man who has won the prestigious NFL title but who has an unshakeable allegiance to the sky blue and white of his beloved Argentina soccer team?
Unexpected success
Gramatica was born in Buenos Aires in 1975. Like all Argentinian children his age, he wanted to be like Mario Kempes or Diego Maradona. Yet destiny had a surprise in store for him, as he explained to FIFA.com: “When I was 10 I moved to the United States. My dream was to play football, but in my final year at secondary school my school asked me if I wanted to join the American football team. After my first practice session, the coach told my parents that I could make the NFL and study at university on a scholarship. That’s how I changed sports.”
His coach was a wise judge. In 1999, Gramatica was picked by NFL franchise Tampa Bay Buccaneers and went on three years later to play a big hand in helping them win the XXXVII Super Bowl. “It was amazing,” he explained. “It’s like winning the World Cup. The whole of the USA comes to a standstill, and even the half-time show is spectacular. It’s very hard to make the Super Bowl because the league is very competitive. I only made it once and luckily we won it.”
Gramatica was and remains the only Argentinian ever to have picked up a coveted Super Bowl ring. The question is, would he be prepared to swap it for a FIFA World Cup winner’s medal, a prize he dreamed about when he was a boy? “Absolutely!” came the answer. “American football has given me so much but football was always my passion. A World Cup would be incredible. Some players have never managed it, even Leo Messi, who to my mind is the best player of all time. It would have been incredible.”
Growing closer
For decades, soccer was regarded as something of a sideshow by American sports fans, who much preferred homegrown pursuits such as American football and baseball. Gramatica has noticed a big change in recent years, however: “The World Cup got some big audiences on TV and today’s stars, like Messi, are very well known. Football’s got quite a big following in the country now.”
Players from both codes are also showing an increasing interest in each other’s sports. Only a few days ago Barcelona defender Gerard Pique tweeted his admiration for New England Patriots, while former NFL receiver Chad Johnson is a passionate Real Madrid and Mexico fan. And a few weeks before Brazil 2014, a video of New York Jets players showing Cristiano Ronaldo how to throw an American football went viral.
As Gramatica revealed, soccer also offers NFL kickers a valuable opportunity to hone their kicking skills: “At this moment in time I don’t think there’s any kicker out there who hasn’t played football before. That’s how you develop all your technique and strength. When I was playing I always took a ball with me to warm up, and some of my team-mates would join me for a quick game.”
Having retired in 2008, he now runs a construction company with his brothers in Florida, where he also coaches his oldest son’s soccer team. “Yes, it’s still our passion. My two oldest children play and we’re all Boca [Juniors] fans. In fact we went to see the team when they came here for pre-season training. We got to meet Carlitos Tevez, which was a great experience.”
A football fan at heart but with room in it for a different-shaped ball, Gramatica is all set to watch Sunday’s Super Bowl with his family. Looking ahead to American football’s biggest day of the year, he said: “The two best teams of the season are there: Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers. I think Carolina are the better team but I’d like to see Denver win because I was a team-mate of their quarterback Peyton Manning. He’s such a legend that he deserves to retire with an NFL win.”