Tab Ramos and the Rebirth of U.S. Soccer
Latino USA
My Cultura, Futuro and iHeartPodcasts
4.8 • 3.8K Ratings
🗓️ 31 May 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
When Tab Ramos’ family migrated from Uruguay as a child in the 1970s, he had no idea he’d play a role in the rebirth of U.S. soccer. “I remember telling my father at the time: out of all the countries in the world that we could move to, why do we have to move to the one that doesn't have soccer?” Tab said. But Tab became one of the best U.S. soccer players of the 1990s and played for the national team when the U.S. hosted the World Cup in 1994. In this special episode of our new podcast “American Futbol” we hear about his losses, his wins, and a cracked skull that nearly killed him.
Latino USA is the longest-running news and culture radio program in the U.S., centering Latino stories and hosted by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Maria Hinojosa.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Futuro. |
| 0:06.6 | In uptown New York City, |
| 0:09.4 | underdogs created a sound |
| 0:11.7 | that changed music forever. |
| 0:14.6 | And we called it salsa. |
| 0:16.6 | And one label captured that sound like no other. |
| 0:19.8 | Espania Records. I'm Rosie. And one label captured that sound like no other. Spania! |
| 0:23.4 | Banya Records. |
| 0:29.5 | I'm Rosie Perez, and this is our thing, the birth of salsa in Nueva York. |
| 0:33.0 | An original podcast from Futuro Studios. |
| 0:35.6 | Listen now wherever you get your podcast. |
| 0:48.2 | Hello, dear listener. |
| 0:56.3 | On Friday, we brought you the first episode of a new show by Futuro Studios. It's called American Football. |
| 1:04.4 | It's a podcast about soccer culture in the U.S. and it's underdog roots. So as we gear up for the men's World Cup in just a few weeks, American Football is airing short narrative episodes and deep dive interviews about the game we love and the people who love it. |
| 1:16.4 | Here is the second episode. |
| 1:18.2 | It's an interview with one of the players who was part of the rebirth of soccer in the U.S. |
| 1:22.5 | hosted by Latino USA's managing editor, Fernanda Echavari. |
| 1:34.1 | Thank you. Latino USA's managing editor, Fernanda Echavari. It was really difficult to leave Uruguay for me. |
| 1:37.3 | I remember telling my father at the time, |
| 1:39.8 | Dad, out of all the countries in the world that we can move to, |
| 1:42.9 | why do we have to move to the one that |
| 1:44.8 | doesn't have soccer? And my grandfather was the one who, you know, he cleaned my soccer shoes. |
... |
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