The National Football League is continuing to expand its global reach, crossing off another international city this weekend.
The Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders will play in Madrid on Sunday, marking the first time the league will play a game in Spain.
For Alejandro Villanueva, the game hits close to home in more ways than one. Not only did he grow up in Spain, but his father is based at Naval Station Rota, where a flag football event was hosted Wednesday. The former NFL offensive lineman, who served in the U.S. military, is spending time in Spain on behalf of USAA, the NFL’s official Salute to Service partner.
“The United States military and the country of Spain have been the two entities that I’ve grown under. I’ve always prayed for good relations between Spain and the United States, because if there was a fracture or friction between the two, I would always have to either pick or be put in a terrible position. But to see the fact that an American football game is going to take place in Spain is pretty surreal,” Villanueva said in a recent interview with Fox News Digital.
“It’s pretty interesting living in the United States and seeing the evolution of how Spain and the United States get along, how the base has meant so much to the U.S. Navy, and how the sport now is beginning to interest Spanish fans. All those things — I could have never hoped for a better evolution when I left for the United States. So the full-circle moment of coming back to my hometown, to be out here working with troops, speaking in English on an American base now, it’s pretty awesome.”
“It’s just an unbelievable experience to be out with everybody on the base earlier today,” added Theismann, who is in town to watch his former team. “It’s one of the things that I love about USAA — it’s honor through action. That’s what USAA is all about, honoring the military through action. I was at the Army-Navy game this past year, and now I’m out here in Spain being able to honor the troops again.”
Theismann discussed the importance of growing the game globally, saying that as long as every game is “packed,” there is no reason why the NFL should not continue to go over the Atlantic Ocean.
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“With the attendance that we get at the international games, it tells you the insatiable appetite that people have for the NFL,” Theismann said. “If people weren’t showing up, you wouldn’t have these games. But yet, you get packed stadiums — everybody’s got their jerseys on, their banners, their faces painted. They’re as enthusiastic in different parts of the world as they are back in the States. So I think it’s just an effort for the NFL and by the NFL to continue to grow the brand.”
Villanueva echoed similar sentiments, but took a different route. He called American football a “cultural weapon” that could bridge gaps between the United States and Spain.
“There’s no hiding from the fact that players represent stories, and those stories represent values, and those values are the values that represent all of us. I think that American football represents hard work and sacrifice, superseding everything else. It doesn’t matter where you come from — if you work harder and you sacrifice more than the person next to you, you deserve to win, you deserve to be in the NFL, you deserve good things to happen to you. And I think that those are the values that you have in the United States,” Villanueva said.
“I think American sports fit into that category of entertainment. You can learn so much about what we value just by watching American football. I do think the rest of the world is a lot more traditional. America does have incredible things to sell through American football. Everybody watches Sunday night, Monday night — whoever is playing, you’re watching.”
“Everybody can learn and be a huge fan of this sport, just like the British were able to expand soccer throughout the world,” Villanueva added. “I hope the NFL continues to expand internationally.”
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