American football
has
movie games.
But also lives that seem to be scripted by some Hollywood creative.
One of them could tell the story of
Kim Pegula
, the owner of the
Buffalo Bills
, one of the most popular teams in the
NFL
that is in the race to win the first
Super Bowl
in its history.
On the weekend in which the
Divisional Rounds
of the season are played, with four games that will determine the two finalists of each conference, the Bills led by quarterback
Josh Allen
await the current champions, the
Kansas City Chiefs
of
Patrick Mahomes
, a clash full of condiments that promises to break all ratings measurement records (in Argentina it is broadcast by ESPN and Star+, this Sunday from 8:30 p.m.).
Born in 1959, the Bills quickly became one of the most iconic and passionate franchises in the NFL.
Their fans call themselves the
Bills Mafia
and they have a bizarre (and reckless) ritual before games: they throw themselves from a height onto a burning table with the aim of breaking it.
Just as it is read, but better to watch it in a video.
Video
Before American football games, they throw themselves on tables to demonstrate their fanaticism.
Things of geography, although the
New York Giants
and the
New York Jets
exist , the Bills are the only team from New York proper, since the city of
Buffalo
is located inland of that extensive state while the others Two teams mentioned play very close to the Big Apple but on the other side of the Hudson River, in New Jersey territory.
There they have the Niagara Falls, in its translation the
Niagara Falls
.
And since "falls" also means "falls", ESPN and its extraordinary cycle
"30 for 30"
wisely titled "Four Falls of Buffalo" the 2015 documentary that recounts a negative streak to which it is difficult to find similarities in sports. general level.
Buffalo is the only team in NFL history to reach four consecutive Super Bowls...
but lost them all
.
It was between 1991 and 1994, and in the first of four attempts to win their first Vince Lombardi Trophy, they had glory at the feet of
Scott Norwood
but his kick for a 47-yard field goal went wide to the right and It ended the 19-20 loss to the Giants in Tampa.
Despite the frustration, after that first and valuable grand final, the Bills returned to the city and were received with one of those massive parades in which the team members go up to a stage and speak to thank the public for their support.
In the midst of that fervor, people asked for the word of Norwood, who had stepped aside after being harshly criticized for his ruling.
But he was supported by the fans.
"I never felt more loved than in this moment,"
the soulless
kicker
finally said , before the 25 thousand people who chanted his name.
January 27, 1991: With :08 left in the game, Scott Norwood's 47-yard FG attempt sails Wide Right and the Giants beat the Bills 20-19 to win Super Bowl XXV in Tampa.
pic.twitter.com/Z1sckOpbIr
— This Day In Sports Clips (@TDISportsClips) January 27, 2021
"We want Scott!"
It was a rallying cry for the fans until the following season, when in a very small revenge, a kick from him put them back in the Super Bowl, which would mean their second loss, this time against
Washington
in Minneapolis but by 24-37.
Norwood left the team but the constant remained like karma: in 1993 he went 17-52 in Pasadena and in 1994 he finished 13-30 in Atlanta, both against the
Dallas
Cowboys
.
They were never as close as the first time.
But what they were denied by centimeters can be fulfilled this year, and a lot will have to do with a twist of fate that occurred thousands of kilometers away.
Kim Pegula, the new queen of the Bills
At the beginning of the nineties, while Buffalo was surfing the happiest and at the same time painful seasons in its history,
Kim Pegula
was in something else.
He didn't even have that last name, he was Kim Kerr.
And she didn't know that she was about to embark on a love story that would end up putting her in charge of the Bills.
It was at that time that he met
Terry Pegula
, a successful businessman and engineer who emerged from the oil industry, with businesses in an infinite number of areas, and whose fortune today is estimated at
7 billion dollars
.
They married and she became his right-hand man.
Terry and Kim Pegula, at the home of the Buffalo Bills.
Photo: Bills Press.
However, the first turn in the life of this extraordinary woman had taken place a few decades earlier, in Asian land.
The story of Henry Ford's great-granddaughter, who is in charge of the
Detroit Lions
(still in the postseason, they also face the
Buccaneers
on Sunday),
was told in
Clarín .
Unlike the heir to the creator of the most popular car in the world, the family tree of the owner of the Bills is a mystery.
Kim was abandoned as a baby on a street in
Seoul
, the capital of South Korea.
She was found in front of a police station, as recently reconstructed by the official NFL website.
And she never knew anything about her biological parents, except for the information (from DNA banks) that one of them would be originally from Japan.
After spending time in an orphanage, a few years later she was adopted by
Ralph and Marilyn Kerr
, a Canadian couple who needed to move to the United States to complete the process that would allow them to receive her.
They chose
Rochester
, a suburb of New York, the first home where she could feel the love of a family.
She finished school, where she excelled as a cheerleader and in the school band, and couldn't decide what to do with her studies.
She planned a trip to Alaska that did not happen, and she ended up working as a waitress at a restaurant in Belfast, New York,
where Pegula dined
.
Everything happened quickly, Kim left gastronomy and began to show her skills in the business world by working in one of Terry's companies.
They fell in love, got married and had three children, among whom stands out
Jessica Pegula
, the renowned 29-year-old professional tennis player who became number 3 in the world and today occupies fifth place in the WTA ranking.
Tennis player Jessica Pegula, Kim's daughter.
Photo: Christinne Muschi / The Canadian Press via AP.
Sports are a central part of this family, which also includes the two children from Terry's first marriage.
In 2011 he founded
Pegula Sports
, a group of ventures linked to the area that, in addition to the Bills, also includes the
Buffalo Sabers
of the
NHL
, among other teams.
The Bills were acquired at the end of 2014, when the team was put up for sale after the death of
Ralph
Wilson
, its founder.
The Pegulas emerged victorious from a true battle that on the other side had none other than
Donald Trump
, determined to get into the NFL, and
Jon Bon Jovi
with a sweet wallet
.
The iconic singer was determined to pay whatever it took and was already organizing his move to the city, but the belief began to circulate that his intention was to move the team to Toronto.
That strained everything and took him out of the fray
.
Some time later, Bon Jovi himself discovered that this belief in Buffalo (where DJs avoided playing his songs) was part of
a dirty campaign
orchestrated by the former Republican president.
Terry and Kim Pegula, with family and with the Bills jersey.
"I will never return to Buffalo, you will never see my face in Buffalo, ever. I erased it from the map," complained Bon Jovi in the British GQ magazine, unable to digest one of the "most disappointing episodes of my life."
In troubled waters, the profit of Terry Pegula, who in addition to being a successful and wealthy man was part of the local community: he put in
$1.4 billion in cash
and stayed with the Bills.
Today, according to specialized media such as
Forbes
, his value would be around 3.7 billion and in 2028 it would reach 6 billion.
Nothing bad.
Buying the Bills was another step for the Pegulas in their community work within the city, transforming a forgotten area of Buffalo into what is now called
Pegulaville
, a multi-acre area with training centers, stadiums, restaurants and entertainment complexes. .
What money or financial geniuses cannot buy is sporting glory.
A debt that in this city as cold as it is flat, of 800 thousand inhabitants, means getting rid of the backpack of those four lost finals that are not forgotten.
Kim Pegula in action.
Photo: Buffalo Bills.
After taking over as owner, Kim rearranged the numbers, injected investments and it took two years to begin to see the
progress
of what she was building within the team.
The Bills
returned to the playoffs after a 20-year absence
, and in July 2018, the hiring of
Josh
Allen
, emerging from that year's Draft, allowed them to have a quarterback they could trust to once again go in search of a Super Bowl, which until now was not given.
Josh Allen, the hero the Buffalo Bills need.
Photo: AP Photo/Joshua Bessex.
To get to the big game on Sunday, February 11 in Las Vegas, they must first overcome two steps: they are narrow favorites against the Chiefs and then they should beat whoever wins between the
Baltimore
Ravens
and
the Houston
Texans
.
It is clear that the film by Kim Pegula, the South Korean who was born with nothing and today seeks everything, has several chapters left.