'Gringo' in Chivas' midst

Because of his ties to California, Chivas de Guadalajara forward Jes�s Padilla earned the nickname "Gringo."

Turns out, there's more to his nickname than just his American upbringing, and the reality may cause some serious credibility problems for Chivas, a club whose massive support south of the border is in part thanks to its policy of fielding only Mexican-born players.

SI.com has learned that 20-year-old Padilla was, in fact, born in California and not in the Mexican state of Jalisco, as his bio on Chivas' Web site states. At any other club in Mexico, such a fact wouldn't be an issue. At Chivas, however, it's a big deal.

Chivas officials admitted uncertainty regarding his American birth when contacted by SI.com

"He has both American and Mexican citizenship," Chivas vice president Nestor de la Torre said by phone. "I am not sure if he was born in the United States or in Mexico."

Efforts to reach Padilla and his family were unsuccessful.

Despite Chivas de Guadalajara's proud history, Padilla is actually the third American-born player to play for the legendary Mexican side. Maryland-born Gerardo Mascare�o played for the team in the Verano '98 season, and when it was revealed he was actually American-born, it created waves among Chivas' fan support.

SI.com also confirmed the rumored American birth of Eduardo Fern�ndez de la Garza, a goalkeeper who played 77 games for Chivas between '93 and '97 and was born on July 30, 1962, in El Paso County, Texas, according to documents obtained by SI.com

As far as Padilla goes, de la Torre said he had documents stating the youngster's Mexican roots. "What I am certain is that he has Mexican paperwork, that he has Mexican citizenship," he said. "There aren't any false papers here. We have his paperwork here. Maybe he was born over there, I can't say for sure. But he is a Mexican citizen and we have a Mexican birth certificate."

The document obtained by SI.com, though, says otherwise. According to the birth certificate, Padilla was born on March 3, 1987, at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, Calif. The document also shows his birth parents to be Andr�s Padilla, born in Mexico, and mother Monique Denise Cisneros, native of California. Each was 21 years old at the time of their son's birth, according to the document.