The Mexico national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de México) represents Mexico in men's international football, which is governed by the Federación Mexicana de Fútbol (English: Mexican Football Federation) founded in 1927. It has been an affiliate member of FIFA since 1929 and a founding affiliate member of CONCACAF since 1961. Regionally, it is an affiliate member of NAFU in the North American Zone. From 1946 to 1961, it was a member of NAFC, the former governing body of football in North America and a predecessor confederation of CONCACAF, and also a member of PFC, the former unified confederation of the Americas.
Mexico has qualified for the FIFA World Cup seventeen times and has qualified consecutively since 1994, making it one of six countries to do so.[2] It is one of four CONCACAF teams to have advanced to the knockout stage, reaching the quarter-finals twice (1970 and 1986) both as hosts, and also reaching the round of 16 in seven editions. On 13 July 1930, Mexico played with France in the first match in World Cup history in Uruguay 1930. In 2026, Mexico will host the World Cup for the third time. It has qualified for the FIFA Confederations Cup seven times, being the only CONCACAF team and the only non-European or South American team to have won a FIFA global competition, winning the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup as hosts, defeating Brazil 4–3.
Mexico has participated twenty-six times in CONCACAF's premier continental competition, it is the most successful team in its confederation, winning 15 CONCACAF continental titles (10 CONCACAF Gold Cup titles, 3 CONCACAF Championship titles, one CONCACAF Nations League and one CONCACAF Cup). It has participated eleven times in the Copa América, finishing as runners-up twice (1993 and 2001) and finishing in third place three times. It also participated three times in the Panamerican Championship, finishing in third place in 1960.
It is one of eight nations[a] to have won two of the three most important global football competitions that are recognized and endorsed by FIFA (World Cup, Confederations Cup, and Olympic football tournament), winning the 1999 Confederations Cup[3] with the senior team and the 2012 Olympic football tournament[4] with the under-23 team.
History
Early years
Football in Mexico was first organized in the early 20th century by European immigrant groups, notably miners from Cornwall, England, and in later years Spanish exiles fleeing the Spanish Civil War.
The team's first match was played on 9 December 1923 at Parque España in Mexico City, beating Guatemala 2–1, which was the first match of a series of international friendlies played against Guatemala. The second match played on 12 December was won by Mexico 2–0, and the final match of the series, played on 16 December, ended in a 3–3 draw.[5] The manager for this team was Rafael Garza Gutiérrez.[5]
It would be another four years before the national team would be represented in international friendlies. Mexico faced Spain, drawing 3–3 on 19 June 1927. During this series, the team also played against Nacional de Montevideo, losing 1–3.[6]
Formation
The Mexico national team before the first ever World Cup game against France in 1930
In 1927, the first official governing football body in Mexico was founded. The 1928 Olympic Football Tournament was Mexico's first official international competition, where Mexico lost to Spain 1–7 in the round of 16.[7]
Mexico participated in the inaugural 1930 FIFA World Cup in Uruguay, grouped with Argentina, Chile, and France. Mexico took part in the first World Cup match ever, a 4–1 loss to France, with Mexico's first World Cup goal scored by Juan Carreño.[8] In their second match, Mexico fell to Chile 3–0. Mexico's third match, against Argentina, featured the first penalty of the tournament, scored by Mexico's Manuel Rosas, although Mexico would go on to lose this match by a score of 6–3.[9]
Post-WWII
Mexican squad in April 1952
Mexico did not appear in another World Cup tournament until 1950. Despite being the strongest team in the North American Football Confederation and its successor, CONCACAF, Mexico struggled to make much of an impact in the World Cup before 1970, and found it difficult to compete against European and South American teams. However, goalkeeper Antonio Carbajal has the distinction of being the first player ever to appear in five consecutive World Cups.[10]
Mexico hosted the 1970 World Cup and kicked off their campaign with a scoreless draw against the Soviet Union, followed by a 4–0 win over El Salvador. Mexico advanced to the next round with a victory against Belgium, and in the quarter-finals, Mexico was eliminated by Italy, losing 4–1.
In 1986, Mexico again hosted the World Cup. Coached by Bora Milutinović, Mexico was placed in Group B where they defeated Belgium 2–1, drew 1–1 with Paraguay, and defeated Iraq 1–0. El Tri topped their group, and advanced to the next round where they defeated Bulgaria 2–0. In the quarter-finals, Mexico lost to West Germany 1–4 in a penalty shootout after the match finished 0–0.
1990s
Mexico was disqualified from the 1990 FIFA World Cup (and other international competitions) after using players over the age limit in the qualifying round for the 1989 FIFA World Youth Championship, known as the "Cachirules" scandal. The punishment was applied to all Mexico national representatives of all FIFA-sanctioned tournaments.[11]
In the 1990s, after hiring coach César Luis Menotti, Mexican football began experiencing greater international success. In the 1993 Copa América they finished second, losing to Argentina 2–1 in the final. At the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico won its group on tiebreakers, emerging from a group composed of Italy, Ireland, and Norway. However, Mexico lost in the round of 16 to Bulgaria on penalty kicks.
At the 1998 FIFA World Cup, Mexico was placed in a group with the Netherlands, South Korea and Belgium. Mexico won their opening fixture 3–1 against South Korea, drew Belgium 2–2, and against the Netherlands with the same score, qualifying for the round of 16. In that round, Mexico lost 2–1 to Germany.
In 1999, Mexico won its first official FIFA tournament by becoming the first host nation to win the FIFA Confederations Cup. Mexico defeated the United States 1–0 in the semifinals, and 1998 World Cup runners-up Brazil 4–3 in the final.[12]
21st century
2000s
Mexico was placed in Group G at the 2002 World Cup alongside Italy, Croatia, and Ecuador. Mexico started with a 1–0 win over Croatia. In the second match, Mexico earned a 2–1 win over Ecuador. Mexico then achieved a 1–1 draw against Italy. In the round of 16, Mexico played rivals United States, losing 2–0.
Mexico was one of eight seeded teams at the 2006 World Cup in Germany, and entered Group D, being drawn with Iran, Angola and Portugal. Mexico won their opening match 3–1 against Iran. In their second match, Mexico played to a 0–0 draw against Angola. After losing to Portugal 2–1, Mexico reached the round of 16, where they would be eliminated again, this time to Argentina, 2–1. Mexico's coach Ricardo Lavolpe stepped down after the tournament, and was succeeded by Hugo Sánchez.
After losing the final match of the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup 1–2 against the United States, Mexico successfully rebounded at the 2007 Copa América. Beginning by beating Brazil 2–0, they then defeated Ecuador and tied with Chile to come first in Group B. In the quarter-finals, Mexico beat Paraguay 6–0, but lost in the semi-finals 3–0 to Argentina. Mexico secured third place against Uruguay, winning 3–1.
Mexico qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, where they were drawn into Group A alongside host South Africa, France and Uruguay. They drew 1–1 against South Africa, defeated France 2–0, and lost 1–0 to Uruguay, and advanced to the round of 16, where they were eliminated following another defeat to Argentina, 1–3.
The 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup saw Mexico win their group with three wins and no losses. During the tournament, however, five players tested positive for the banned substance clenbuterol and were suspended from the competition.[14] Mexico beat Guatemala in the quarter-finals 2–1, and Honduras 2–0 in the semi-finals. For the third-straight year, the final would be contested between Mexico and the United States; Mexico won the match 4–2,[15] and qualified for the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil, where they were eliminated at the group stage.
Mexico placed second in their group at the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and advanced to the semifinals and faced Panama.[16] Mexico lost the match 2–1, their second defeat to Panama in the competition after losing to them in the group stage. The two losses to Panama were the first two times Panama had ever defeated Mexico in a Gold Cup match.[17]
At the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, Mexico was drawn into Group C along with Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba and Guatemala. The team placed second in the group, and won the quarterfinal match against Costa Rica and semifinal against Panama, both under controversial circumstances.[20][21][22] Mexico won the Gold Cup after defeating Jamaica 3–1 in the final.[23] Two days after the final, Miguel Herrera was released as coach of the national team after an alleged physical altercation with TV Azteca announcer Christian Martinoli.[24] On 10 October, Mexico defeated the United States 3–2 to win the inaugural edition of the CONCACAF Cup, thus earning qualification to the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia.[25] The following month, Juan Carlos Osorio was hired as Mexico's 16th manager, replacing interim manager Ricardo Ferretti.[26]
Mexico entered the Copa América Centenario, hosted in the United States, on a 19-match unbeaten streak that began in June 2015.[27] El Tri placed first in Group C, winning 3–1 over Uruguay and 2–0 over Jamaica, and drawing 1–1 with Venezuela.[28] In the quarter-final against Chile in Santa Clara, California, the team lost 7–0, ending the unbeaten streak at 22 after nearly a year.[29] After the match, manager Osorio apologized to Mexico's fans for what he described as an "embarrassment, an accident of football".[30]
At the 2017 Confederations Cup, Mexico was drawn into Group A along with Portugal, New Zealand, and hosts Russia. El Tri advanced as runners-up of the group, and lost 4–1 to Germany in the semi-finals.[31] Mexico finished fourth in the tournament, losing 2–1 to Portugal in the third-place match.[32]
In their opening match of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Mexico defeated defending champion Germany, thanks to a sole goal from Hirving Lozano, for the first time in a World Cup match.[33] They would go on to defeat South Korea 2–1 in their next match,[34] with goals from Carlos Vela and Javier Hernández,[35][36] before falling 3–0 to Sweden in the last group stage match.[37] Despite the loss, Mexico qualified to the round of 16 for the seventh-consecutive tournament.[38] In the round of 16, Mexico was defeated 2–0 by Brazil;[39][40] the defeat meant that for the seventh tournament in a row, Mexico failed to reach the quarterfinals since they last hosted the World Cup in 1986.[41] On 28 July, Juan Carlos Osorio left as head coach on the expiry of his contract.[42]
In January 2019, Gerardo Martino was appointed as Mexico's new head coach, becoming the third Argentine to coach the national team.[43] In that year's Gold Cup tournament, they won all three group stage matches, defeated Costa Rica in penalties 5–4 following a 1–1 draw in the quarter-final and won against Haiti in the semi-final. Mexico won the Gold Cup after defeating the United States 1–0 in the final.[44]
2020s
Mexico finished runners-up in the 2021 CONCACAF Nations League Final and the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup, both in losses to the United States. At the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Mexico finished third in Group C behind Argentina and Poland (due to goal difference), making it the first time since 1978 that Mexico were eliminated in the group stage (the 1982 and 1990 World Cup tournaments, in which Mexico did not participate, notwithstanding). This led to the end of Mexico's streak of reaching the round of 16 (which it had done in the previous seven World Cups), and as a result head coach Gerardo Martino stepped down immediately after the elimination.[45]
In February 2023, Diego Cocca was appointed as the new head coach, the fourth Argentine to take the job.[46] The same month, Mexico automatically qualified for the 2026 World Cup as co-host. In the 2023 CONCACAF Nations League semi-finals, Mexico suffered a 0–3 defeat to the United States, which caused even more widespread outrage in Mexico.[47] They defeated Panama 1–0 in the third place match that was largely boycotted by Mexican fans;[48] the following day, Cocca was dismissed from his post, with Jaime Lozano appointed on an interim basis to take charge for the forthcoming Gold Cup.[49] Mexico won the tournament, defeating Panama 1–0 in the final.[50] After the win, Lozano was appointed as head coach on a permanent basis.[51] However, following an underwhelming group stage exit from the 2024 Copa América, on 16 July, Lozano was dismissed from his position.[52] Six days later, Javier Aguirre was named Mexico's new head coach, his third spell with the national side.[53] In March 2025, Mexico won its first Nations League title, beating Panama 2–1 in the final at SoFi Stadium.[54]
The Estadio Azteca, also known in Spanish as "El Coloso de Santa Úrsula", was built in 1966. It is the official home stadium of the Mexico national team, as well as the Mexican club team Club América. It has an official capacity of 87,523,[55][56] making it the largest football-specific stadium in the Americas and the third largest football stadium in the world. The stadium hosted the FIFA World Cup Final in 1970 and 1986, and the stadium will host the tournament again in 2026.
Friendly matches hosted by the Mexico national team often take place in stadiums across the United States, which are marketed under the branding MEXTOUR by FMF. From 2000 to 2019, the national team played 110 friendlies in the United States, which were criticized as "cash grabs" by fans.[57] In 2022, the team played 15 matches in the United States and averaged over 52,000 in attendance at each of them; several were played at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, which El Tri head coach Jaime Lozano labeled as "the second home of the Mexican national team".[58] Additional friendlies under the MEXTOUR brand are also played in Mexico, including at the Azteca for special occasions.[citation needed]
The Mexico national team traditionally utilizes a tricolor system, composed of green shirts, white shorts and red socks, which originate from the national flag of Mexico, known as the tricolor.[59] Until the mid-1950s, Mexico wore a predominantly maroon kit, with black or dark blue shorts.
In 2015, Adidas released a new all-black color scheme for Mexico's home kit. Green, white and red remain as accent colors.[60]
In 2017, the Mexico national team's jerseys were updated to reflect their Spanish names correctly spelled, with the accent diacritic mark.[61]
All of Mexico's matches are shown live on over-the-air networks Televisa and TV Azteca in Mexico. In the United States all of Mexico's international friendlies and home World Cup qualifiers are shown on Spanish language network Univision while away World Cup qualifiers are shown on Telemundo.[62][63] On 30 January 2013, English language network ESPN and Univision announced an agreement to telecast the Mexico national team home World Cup qualifiers and international friendly matches in English in the United States.[64]
Mexico's fans are infamously known for the vulgar chant "¡Eh, puto!", which is typically said when an opponent's goalkeeper is about to perform a goal kick.[65][66]
Origins
The origins of the chant is thought to have had developed in the 1980s in Monterrey where in little league American football games, fans would chant "¡Eh, pum!" during the opening kickoff. This chant was not disparagingly used as the word pum is attributed to an impact of some sort.[67] Though the current incarnation of the chant is widely thought to have originated sometime between 2000 and 2003 by supporters of Atlas to former Atlas goalkeeper, Oswaldo Sánchez, no primary sources exist that support this claim and is an urban legend.[68][69] The earliest documented usage of puto being chanted by fans in this manner occurred on 22 May 2004, during the second leg of the 2004 Clausura repechage match between Cruz Azul and Pachuca. Fans of Pachuca repeatedly chanted puto every time Óscar Pérez performed a goal kick.[70][68]
Sanctions
Due to the homophobic meaning of the word puto in Mexican Spanish (a vulgar term for a male prostitute), the chant received negative attention in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Mexico's fans defended it as being traditionally used in the Liga MX.[71] On 23 June 2014, FIFA dropped an investigation, concluding that the chant "was not considered insulting in the specific context". Football Against Racism in Europe, an anti-discrimination organization, criticized the ruling as "disappointing".[72] In 2017, in advance of the 2018 World Cup, FIFA fined the Mexico football federation over fans' use of the chant and introduced escalating sanctions,[66] which were first applied in Liga MX games in 2019.[65] In 2021, three Mexico international matches in the United States were halted because of fan behaviour, including the CONCACAF Nations League final against the United States, in which fans also threw things onto the pitch and Giovanni Reyna was hit in the face by a heavy object.[65][73] On 18 June 2021, FIFA announced that as a penalty for the use of the chant in a pre-Olympics tournament in Guadalajara, spectators would be barred from Mexico's first two qualifying matches for the 2022 World Cup.[65] During the semifinals, the match between Mexico and the United States was stopped at the 90th minute and eventually ended early due to the chants.[74]
Rivalries
Brazil
The rivalry between Mexico and Brazil is a major football rivalry characterized by frequent, high-stakes matches in tournaments like the FIFA World Cup, FIFA Confederations Cup, Copa América, Olympics, and the CONCACAF Gold Cup with Mexico achieving notable upsets against the traditionally dominant Brazilian team. Mexico is one of the few non-South American powers that consistently challenge Brazil creating the rivalry of the two largest countries in Latin America.[citation needed]
Mexico has a rivalry with Argentina, given these two nations are among the most renowned Hispanic nations in the world.[75][76][77][78] The rivalry is abnormal by the fact it is intercontinental, with Argentina part of CONMEBOL and Mexico part of CONCACAF. This rivalry is more keenly felt by Mexican supporters than Argentines, who typically view Brazil, Uruguay, England and Germany as bigger rivals. In fact, a number of Argentines do not consider Mexico as rivals. Mexico has historically not fared well against Argentina, recording only 4 wins, 16 losses and 12 draws.
Mexico and the United States are widely considered as the two top teams in CONCACAF. Matches between the two nations often attract media attention, public interest and discourse in both countries. Although the first match was played in 1934, their rivalry was not considered major until the late 20th century, when the U.S. emerged as a solid international side.
Mexico met the United States in the round of 16 of the 2002 World Cup, losing 2–0.[79] Ten years later, on 15 August 2012, the United States defeated Mexico at Estadio Azteca in the first victory for the U.S. against Mexico on Mexican soil in 75 years.[80] On 11 November 2016, El Tri achieved their second consecutive victory on U.S. soil, in qualification for the 2018 World Cup, by defeating the U.S. in Columbus, Ohio.[81]
Since their first meeting in 1934, the two teams have met 78 times, with Mexico leading at 37 wins, 17 draws, and 24 losses, 147 goals scored, and 92 conceded. Mexico dominated in early years, with a 27–9–5 record through 1990. However, since that time the series has become much more competitive, largely due to growth of soccer in the United States; since 2000, the series has favored the U.S. 18–8–9, with Mexico outscored 48–33. But in the 2010s, the rivalry has been marked by Mexican success, with Mexico defeating the United States in the Gold Cup final in 2011 and 2019, and the CONCACAF Cup in 2015. In 2021, however, Mexico lost to the United States in both the CONCACAF Nations League final and the Gold Cup final. Still, Mexico remains undefeated to the United States at home soil in competitive matches, with all 19 meetings at home soil being either a win (15) or a draw (4).[82]
Mexico has a growing rivalry with Costa Rica, as Costa Rica is the first country in CONCACAF to beat Mexico on Mexican soil in FIFA World Cup qualification, known as Aztecazo. Costa Rica is also widely recognised as the only Central American national team to have sufficient quality to compete at the global stage, which increased the importance of the rivalry.[83] Mexico holds a dominant record against Costa Rica with 32 wins, 20 draws and only 6 losses.[84]
The following players were called up for the friendly matches against Panama and Bolivia on 22 and 25 January 2026, respectively.[85][86] Caps and goals correct as of 25 January 2026, after the match against Bolivia.
Official continental competition organized by PFC, the former unified confederation of the Americas, formed by NAFC, CCCF and CONMEBOL (1946–1961).
Official subregional competition organized by NAFC, direct predecessor confederation of CONCACAF and the former governing body of football in North America (1946–1961).
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
