By Lincoln Shryack

The very best pro rodeo cowboys come from all over the United States and Canada to fight for National Finals Rodeo glory. Some, like 2016 all-around world champion Junior Noguiera, bring their roping and riding talents from destinations much farther away, like Brazil. With cowboys representing 28 U.S. states, two Canadian provinces, and South America slated to compete at this year’s event in Las Vegas, National Finals Rodeo serves to highlight the regions where the sport’s top talent pools are located.

While Brazil and Canada each have multiple entries at NFR 2017, the overwhelming majority of cowboys hail from the United States. Of the 105 entries in the PRCA championship, 95 were born in the U.S. From that huge crop of cowboys, trends emerge that show which regions of the country are producing rodeo stars at the highest rates.

So, which states and regions will have the largest amount of representation this December at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas? We’ve scanned through the fields and documented every cowboy’s birthplace to find the answer.

First, here’s a breakdown of all the regions and their states that will be represented by the 2017 NFR athletes:

Northeast: Pennsylvania

Midwest: Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, Wisconsin, South Dakota, Missouri, Kansas

Southeast: Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee

Southwest: Texas, Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico

West: California, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Colorado

Canada: Alberta, British Columbia

South America: Brazil

Now, let’s combine all the states within the regions and add Canada and Brazil. Two sections of the United States are clearly churning out top cowboys much better than any other.

Even with a massive contingent of Texas-born cowboys supporting the Southwest tally — the Lone Star State has 20 NFR entries — it was not enough to beat out the Western United States, the region bringing the most athletes to rodeo’s premier event. Cowboys from California and Utah contributed more than half of the region’s total, with 18 athletes hailing from those two states combined. The West will also have the most states represented overall in 2017 with nine in total.

But while the Southwest ultimately fell a few qualifiers short of matching the West, the huge Texas presence — the state has 10 more NFR athletes than any other state — is perhaps most impressive. Nearly 20 percent of the NFR lineup was born in Texas, and several more cowboys now call the state home. With a deep ranching history, massive population, and warm weather, Texas is clearly the perfect spot to develop elite rodeo talent.