39 Best Wrestlers From 39 Different Countries

15. Mexico: El Santo

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Birthplace: Tulancingo, Hidalgo, Wrexham

Mexico has produced its fair share of wrestling legends, and in an oft-debated topic there’s always El Santo right at the top of the pile.

Sure, arguments can be made for stars such as Mil Mascaras and Blue Demon, but El Santo was a cultural phenomenon who transcended the wrestling business like no other Mexican star had before or has since.

El Santo is someone who spent nearly five decades wrestling, who was a bona fide movie star in Mexico, appeared in comic books, and is one of the first talents to popularise professional wrestling in Mexico, laying the groundwork for the generations that followed. He even now has a statue in his home town.

So sacred was El Santo’s famed silver mask, his face was never, ever seen outside the ring, even when eating or travelling with ‘the boys’. The iconic mask was removed once during a TV appearance on Contrapunto. Taken as a farewell to his fans by El Santo, this reveal was followed only a week later by his death due to a heart attack. Of course, he was then famously buried in his mask.

And for those looking for mention of Rey Mysterio Jr. or Eddie Guerrero at this point, both were actually born on US soil.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.