Artilleros de Puebla (English: ''Puebla Artillerymen'') were a professional American football team based in Puebla City, Mexico. The Artilleros competed in the Central Division of the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional, the top American football league in Mexico. The team played its home games at the

Estadio Universitario BUAP Estadio Universitario BUAP (official name) is a multi-purpose stadium located in Ciudad Universitaria in Puebla, Puebla, Mexico. It is used by the Lobos BUAP professional football team, currently playing in the Liga MX top flight of Mexican footb ...

. During its existence, the team never made it to playoffs.

History

The team was founded on 17 August 2018, as the first team of the 2019 Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional expansion (the other being the Osos), and the seventh team overall in the LFA. The name of the team is a tribute to the patriots that defeated the army of the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862. Artilleros is the Spanish word for artillerymen. On their first season, Artilleros debuted with a victory against the 2018 champions,

Mexicas The Mexica (Nahuatl: , ;''Nahuatl Dictionary.'' (1990). Wired Humanities Project. University of Oregon. Retrieved August 29, 2012, frolink/ref> singular ) were a Nahuatl-speaking indigenous people of the Valley of Mexico who were the rulers of ...

. Despite finishing the season with 5–3 record, the team was unable to qualify for the playoffs after losing their last game of the season against

Mayas The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived within that historical reg ...

20–25. The team folded in February 2021 prior to the beginning of the

2021 LFA season The 2021 LFA season would have been the sixth season of the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional (LFA), the top American football league in Mexico. Initially, the regular season was scheduled to begin in March 2021. However, the kickoff date was p ...

Stadiums

During their first season, the Artilleros played their home games at

Estadio Templo del Dolor (''Temple of Pain Stadium'') is a stadium in Cholula, Puebla, Mexico. It is primarily used for American football and is the home field of the Aztecas UDLAP. It holds 4,500 people. Artilleros Puebla from Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesiona ...

, located in San Andrés Cholula within the

Universidad de las Américas Puebla Universidad de las Américas Puebla, commonly known as UDLAP ( en, University of the Americas), is a Mexican private university located in San Andrés Cholula, near Puebla. The university is known for its programs in Finance, Arts and Humaniti ...

campus. The stadium had a capacity of 4,500 spectators and it was normally used by the UDLAP's

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

team: the Aztecas. In 2020, Artilleros moved from the Templo del Dolor to the

, with a larger capacity of 19,283 seated spectators. The stadium, originally built from 1997–1999, was renovated in 2012 and used to host

Lobos BUAP Club de Fútbol Lobos de la Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla were a Mexican football club based in Puebla, Mexico. The club represented the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla. The club's history goes back to the early 1930s ...

Liga MX The Liga MX, officially known as the Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is the top professional football division in Mexico, holding 2 tournaments per year. The league is considered the strongest in North America, and among the strongest in a ...

matches until 2019, when the club was dissolved.

Roster

Staff

Season-by-season

Mascot

The team's mascot is Nacho, a Mexican army general from the times of the Second French intervention in Mexico. The name Nacho is a nickname for Ignacio. Thus, the mascot's name is most likely inspired by Ignacio Zaragoza, the general who led the Mexican Army that defeated invading French forces at the Battle of Puebla on

May 5, 1862 Cinco de Mayo ( in Mexico, Spanish for "Fifth of May") is a yearly celebration held on May 5, which commemorates the anniversary of Mexico's victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoz ...

. Nacho was first introduced in the first game of the 2019 season, against the

. Since, Nacho makes appearances at every Artilleros' home game at the

Notable players

* Gabriel Amavizca – K (2019)

References

2018 establishments in Mexico American football teams established in 2018 Defunct American football teams in Mexico Sport in Puebla (city) Sports teams in Puebla {{Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional