On June 17, 2018, a long-range shot by winger Hirving “Chucky” Lozano led to one of the greatest upsets in fútbol history as Mexico defeated Germany 1-0 to start their 2018 World Cup campaign in Russia.
This goal was supposed to be a statement directed at every country in the tournament that Mexico could compete with any team, including the country that won the previous World Cup.
Shortly after this game, though, Mexico suffered a 2-0 defeat to Brazil in the Round of 16, and El Trí’s World Cup hopes were gone. This has been a trend for the national team over the years, with 1986 being the last time they were able to make it past the Round of 16.
The Mexican side hit a new low during the 2022 World Cup, failing to advance past the group stage for the first time since 1978.
The 2026 World Cup draw was held on December 5, 2025, in Washington D.C., and determined the groups and initial matchups for the expanded 48-team tournament.
It was announced that Mexico would be a part of Group A and host South Africa in the opening match of the competition on June 11, 2026, in Mexico City. El Trí will then make a short trip up north to Guadalajara to face South Korea, before traveling back to the nation’s capital to battle the winner of UEFA’s Playoff D in the final group stage match.
Mexico will have to wait until March to see which country, between Denmark, North Macedonia, Czechia, and the Republic of Ireland, will complete their group.
Mexico is set to be on an even higher platform as it will be one of the three host nations for the competition, along with Canada and the United States. El Trí has the honor of playing the opening match of the tournament, a tradition held by every World Cup host nation since 2006.
Mexico will also make history in becoming the first ever country to host the World Cup three times, having previously hosted in 1970 and 1986.
El Trí’s 2025 was a year of two halves. They finished the first half of the year with two trophies: a CONCACAF Nations League title over Panama in March and a CONCACAF Gold Cup victory over the U.S. in July. In the second half of the year, though, they went on a six-game winless streak, hitting poor form at the worst time.
Entering a home World Cup with poor form and instability raises concerns about whether or not the team can find its rhythm in time to meet the heightened expectations of playing on home soil, and redeeming previous tournament underperformances.
With the 2026 World Cup just seven months away, I spoke with some Mexico fans about how they are feeling heading into the tournament.
@uscdimelo With the 2026 World Cup just around the corner, our reporter, Noah Navarro, spoke with Mexico National Team fans about their thoughts on the team heading into the tournament. To hear more about their thoughts, go to USCAnnenbergMedia.com/Dimelo/ #usc #dimelo #mexico #seleccionmexicana ♬ original sound - USC Dímelo
There is considerable uncertainty surrounding the team, given the mixed bag of results over the past year.
“We just lost to Paraguay 2-1, which is like really disappointing, especially cause it’s one of our strongest squads and this is how we’re performing?” said Mexico fan Brad Gallardo Factor. “It’s this constant pattern of giving us false sense of hope and just not performing how we should.”
“We couldn’t beat Uruguay, we couldn’t even beat Japan,” said another Mexico supporter, Jesus Pelcastre. “How are we supposed to beat Germany, Brazil?”
“[On a scale of one to ten] I would say like a one,” expressed by Mexico fan Oscar Jimenez Cervera when asked about how he is feeling regarding the state of the team heading into the 2026 World Cup.
In addition to a string of poor performances from El Trí, there is a further disconnect between certain players and the coaching staff and fans.
Mexico supporters critiqued the decision to start Raúl Rangel in goal over Carlos Acevedo, in the side’s nil-nil draw with Uruguay in November. Rangel was met with boos all throughout the match, despite this friendly being played in Torreón.
Striker Raúl Jiménez spoke out against the actions and criticism from fans, explaining that he understands why there have been only three matches Mexico has played on home soil over the last year. Mexico has played a significant number of “home” friendly matches in the United States, rather than on home ground, leading to a further disconnect between the team and the Mexican fans.
Following Mexico’s 2-1 loss to Paraguay, head coach Javier Aguirre voiced his frustrations with the current state of the team, questioning whether or not certain players could perform in the sport’s highest stage, and explaining that he is still searching for his ideal starting XI heading into next summer’s tournament.
Mexico is slated to play Bolivia and Panama at the end of January, as well as Belgium and Portugal at the end of March, as part of their final preparation for the World Cup.
The stage is as big as ever, considering the World Cup as the most coveted trophy in all of fútbol, and Mexico being one of the three co-hosts for the tournament. One thing that is for certain, Mexico fans will show their pride all summer long, and El Trí will utilize all of the support they can get while finally on home soil.