My name is Richard Guel aka Coronel. I currently live in Phoenix, Arizona and I am the leader of Pancho Villa's Army (PVA). We are a fan group of the Mexican Men’s National Team, with over 15,000 official members. I bleed green, white, and red.
Football surrounds my everyday life. I have been a coach for over 10 years for a local high school Betty H. Fairfax, as well as at recreational level for a team called Tigres FC. I volunteer with local food, clothing, and football equipment drives for my community, not just limited to my Mexican community. Football is the world's game, it is the universal language, we all have differences, but football is the one passion we have in common.
The Rise Of Pancho Villa's Army
My journey started 10 years ago. This year is special because we are celebrating our 10th anniversary. Our founding ‘General’ Sergio Tristan started out using a blog called BigSoccer. He started blogging to see if there were any Mexican supporters in the United States, and sure enough he found hundreds, including a friend who connected us, and the rest is history.
We used social media to create meeting spots around the country, connected people, and we grew and grew. Soon Pancho Villa's Army was in every major city, and the smaller ones soon followed. Then we organized a trip to watch Mexico play. Soon we were international. We visited Canada, Jamaica, Russia, Brazil, South Africa, Costa Rica, Spain, Qatar, and Mexico.
My nickname Coronel means second in command, but now I am fully in charge of PVA. It is truly an honor but with a lot of sleepless nights. I have many people who assist me. I oversee every aspect of PVA. I do ticket distribution, organize player meet and greets with fans, and manage 35 chapter social media accounts including our main page. I set up tailgate parties pre and post-game, and also watch parties. I paint banners, tifos, lead the crowd with chants while playing my murga (drum with symbol). It is exhausting but I would not change it for anything.
Celebrating My Heritage
Technically, I was born in San Antonio, Texas. My mother is from the United States and my father is from Mexico. My parents married in Coahuila, Mexico. My mother went on holiday back to Texas for the Thanksgiving family gathering, and during this visit I was born one week early.
When she recovered, we went back home to Mexico. We lived there for three years, then moved to Texas, and soon after to California. I wear my heritage proudly on my sleeve. Any chance I get to celebrate my heritage is a blessing, especially during football games. It is my chance to celebrate my culture with music, family, friends, and food! Especially the food. One of the greatest feelings is listening to the National Anthem in the stadium. It gives me goosebumps.
My football journey started early when we had family gatherings, our famous “carne asadas” (cookouts). It was always on the weekends at my aunt and uncle’s house. My uncle played recreationally and always had the television on with live or recorded football games. Football was not always accessible like today. Naturally, just to tease him, I would root against his favorite team, and this is where the passion grew.
I cannot exactly recall my first football games because it was at an early age, but I was hooked. When my family could afford to, we would find a way to attend matches. Once I started working and was old enough, off to the stadium I would go, locally and nationally.
World Cups are the most exciting and disappointing, but the adrenaline takes over. Some of the biggest highlights that I remember are Mexico winning the 1999 Confederations Cup against Brazil, the U-17 World Cup and Olympic Gold, but especially watching the 2011 Gold Cup Final vs United States in-person. What a match! I was also present at the Philadelphia 2015 and 2019 Chicago Finals.
24/7 Passion
My passion for the national team is 24/7. I am always thinking of ways to help, support or inject Mexican football into my life. I started painting players and moments in Mexican football to capture and relive those moments. I paint what I am feeling. A few months ago, a long-time PVA supporter lost his son. In remembrance I decided to paint a banner of his portrait (along with his family), which they could take to Mexico games and hang in the stands. It was a special moment because he was with them once again at a Mexico match.
I also work with creating personal experiences for fans of all ages. My main reason for doing this is to help Mexico gain more fans and gain more support. In San Diego in 2023 I arranged a meet and greet with a player from the national team for eight students and two parents. It was exciting to see their faces, and now they are hooked on Mexican soccer for life. I do podcasts, interviews, television and radio appearances to promote Pancho Villa's Army, but mostly to promote the national team.
These photos were taken in several cities in California, Arizona, Texas, and Nevada. Most are of our supporter members, close friends who have now become family through attending Mexico matches throughout the years, along with a few of PVA in action in the stands and outside the stadiums.
These people are just some of our members who are instrumental in our success. Most of them also sacrifice time and resources to make the PVA experience a memorable one: days of planning, countless hours of painting banners, making t-shirts, and practicing chants and instruments. They all come from different walks of life. We have lawyers, law enforcement, real estate agents, doctors, construction workers. You name it, we have it. They all bring a uniqueness to the supporter group.
Equal Opportunities
I have always played but football was not popular where I grew up. As popularity grew, I had a chance to play more recreationally, and coached a boys side. Once my daughters got older, I got into coaching at their schools and club Laveen FC. I am not one of those parents who try to live my childhood through my kids or overwork them at home with practice. I leave everything on the pitch.
The main reason I got into coaching is because I saw a lot of talented girls on their team, most of them being first generation Mexican American. And as I got to know them, I realized that they had no home moral support.
Mexican culture is very traditional. Boys work and play and girls stay home. Boys are the pride of the family and basically can do what they please. After talking to some of my daughter's teammates I saw they had no ambition to go to college or continue their studies because basically they were prepped to start families of their own. I was in disbelief that these young girls did not have a future.
So I took on a coaching position mainly to help these girls prepare for and fill out college applications, as well as guide them through that process and for self-growth. The one thing that makes me proud is that I have several former players who have now gone on and graduated from college and started their careers. I did have some push back from parents, but they quickly realized that the traditional way of thinking was over - and it was time to accept the change that all youth regardless of gender or background should have equal opportunities for a better way of life.
Winning Is Contagious
As much as I hate to say it, I would like to see the United States succeed in world and regional tournaments. The reason being is that winning is contagious. The perfect example is the US women's national team. What they have accomplished is remarkable and they have captured the hearts of young girls and women here in the States. They are great role models for the youth, and now there are football leagues all over the States and football is the number one sports recreation for kids. I am not an expert, but I truly believe it is because of their success that has opened the gates for all.
Unified By Football
My personal ambition would be to someday work or be a part of the national team staff. I would like to think that my efforts would help Mexico win the next World Cup. If it is washing uniforms, ordering food, booking travel arrangements, basically anything that would help the team. If not, in consolation I would like to do the same for a club either in the MLS or Liga MX.
Mexico is about food, music, and football. It is a pillar that keeps our families afloat and together. We cannot have one without the other. We are big on family, weddings, parties, ”carne asadas” and football. It is what unifies us.
Quickfire Heritage Questions
What are the words or phrases/sayings that anyone from your country will know?
Echar un coyote (take a nap)
Hazme el paro (do me a favor)
Sepa la bola (who knows)
No manches (you’re kidding right)
Que chido (that’s cool)
A huevo (right on)
What are the most distinctive landmarks in your country?
Mexico City without a doubt. With major victories the public flocks to celebrate at EL Angel De La Independencia (a gold statue of The Angel of Independence in the center of the city).
Other landmarks include Pyramids, Xochimilco River, Cathedral as well as Zocalo where you will find mile marker 0, the exact locations the Aztecs settled in Mexico City.
What is your country most famous for?
Mexico is famous for its unique and colorful art, passionate music, and for its food.
What do you consider your most distinctive food dish?
We have so many, but if I had to choose only one, I would say pozole. It is a traditional soup made from hominy with meat and can be seasoned and garnished with shredded lettuce or cabbage, chili peppers, onion, garlic, radishes, avocado, salsa or limes. The uniqueness is it is prepared differently per region.
If you could say “these three things symbolize our country and our people”, what would that be?
Food, Music, and Football.
