Ramon Arias is a Birmingham resident and graduate of the University of Alabama, where he studied economics. When he's not busy managing the successful pizza franchise Bravo Corporation, Ramon Arias enjoys following the University of Alabama Crimson Tide football team, which plays an hour outside of Birmingham at Bryant-Denny Stadium.Alabama has been one of the most successful college football teams in recent years, winning four national championships in the last seven years. That success has led to an influx of former Crimson Tide players competing in the National Football League (NFL). At the start of the 2016 season, there were 35 Alabama alumni on NFL rosters.Fifteen of those 35 players are offensive or defensive linemen, while five are either top-tier running backs or up-and-coming backs. Eddie Lacy and T.J Yeldon, for example, have been starting backs with their respective teams for at least two seasons, while recently drafted Derrick Henry and Kenyan Drake are thought to have promising futures. The most dominant former Crimson Tide in the NFL has to be Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones, who finished second in total yards among all receivers in 2016. Other prominent former Alabama players in the NFL include Amari Cooper, Landon Collins, Dont'a Hightower, and C.J. Mosley.
Birmingham, Alabama, resident Ramon Arias serves as president of a successful pizza franchise. Outside of work, Ramon Arias engages in soccer as both a participant and supporter of youth programs. Considered the world’s most popular sport, soccer (more popularly known as football outside of the United States) does not have the same status in the United States. However, the game’s popularity has been growing. Data from US Youth Soccer shows that in 1974 there were only 103,432 registered US youth soccer players. Since then the general trend has been on the rise, with 3,055,148 registered US youth soccer players in 2014. A 2014 ESPN poll showed that professional soccer ranked only behind professional football as the most popular sport among youths aged 12 to 17. Yet this popularity is not only confined to youth. Nielsen reported that 24.3 million US television viewers watched the 2010 World Cup Final between the Netherlands and Spain, a higher total than for either the NCAA men’s championship or the Rose Bowl. Close to folding in 2001, Major League Soccer (MLS), the professional soccer league in the US, now has 20 teams and is planning to expand to 28 teams. While still having its struggles, another positive sign is its 2015 TV deal with various networks valued at $720 million for eight years. MLS is now broadcast in 140 countries, indicating a growth for American soccer both at home and abroad.
