Francisco Romero Diverse Sports Broadcaster

By: Taylor Pineda

Conducting the interview over a middling phone signal during Francisco Romero’s commute to work, (an approximately 1,000 mile commute that is) from Houston to Tucson, Francisco let AZlatinos.com take an exclusive look at who he is.

Diverse is among one of the many adjectives I would use to describe Romero. Born in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, Francisco is one of 7 moving to Tucson at the age of 12. Francisco is loyal to his city obtaining his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from the University of Arizona.  A true Wildcat, Francisco currently does sports broadcasting of both Basketball and Football for the U of A games.

A full-time employee of the Houston Astros, Romero, is the lead sports broadcaster making quite the name for himself.  Francisco humbly has been nominated for 3 Emmy awards and was the first Telemundo Arizona journalist to win one.

But it is not journalism that ultimately set Francisco on his dream career path, originally studying politics and working for Pima County Department of Environmental Quality. Francisco found his roots planted in Politics. He had a passion for change and government. Currently still driven by such passion, he hopes to run for office once retired. Living in a border town and later infused with the culture of Tucson, Francisco has developed from both personal experience and history, the life of living on the border.

When it comes to sports, Francisco shares how he grew up watching the infamous trio of the Dodgers, Lakers and the Cowboys. He remains a loyal fan of these teams as well as his current employer the prominent Houston Astros.

Francisco tells readers that he is really living his dream by working with the Houston Astros. He reminds young Latinos that dreams like this one are completely attainable.

He speaks of the changes in the media from back when he started to today, “I think from when I started in 97’, I have seen technology change from what journalism is about in terms of the infrastructures and equipment.” According to Francisco his best advice is to, “Be prepared, be a one man or women band… learn how to do everything. Be ready to shoot your own video and your own interviews. If you can do that you will be very valuable!”

Francisco’s knowledge can be seen on and off the field as he has diverged in the Latino community. A proud parent of two, Romero was the first person to broadcast in Spanish for the Cincinnati Reds, he is also a former halftime reporter for the Arizona Cardinals, had five seasons broadcasting with the Milwaukee Brewers, and launched his broadcasting career with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Telemundo. These accomplishments just begin to highlight Romero’s career.