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It is adequate to say that soccer is an unprecedented cultural expression. A massive phenomenon that has the gift of bringing together thousands of humans with a single objective, supporting their team and their passion, making us question what their nationality really means to each individual.
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That said, it is a sociological certainty to say that soccer plays a very important role in Mexico. Maybe because it is an activity for which all you need is a ball. Maybe because this has been the home of legends like Hugo Sanchez, or maybe because it is a melodramatic sport in which playing well does not mean winning.
Mexico in the World Cup
So far, the Mexican National Team has participated 14 times in the FIFA World Cup. Its first appearance in a tournament of this magnitude took place in the first ever World Cup in Uruguay in June 1930. To reach their destination, the 17 youngsters who represented Mexico spent a month on a boat, proud to be part of the first international soccer celebration.
On that occasion, Mexico had the honor of playing France in the first match in the history of the World Cup. In the end, the European country defeated the Mexicans by 4 goals, but this moment marked the beginning of a legend that is still being written today.
Since England ’66, the tournament in which Mexico earned its first World Cup point, El Tri has been evolving as a soccer team. Although it is true that with some failures, as a consequence of bad processes, the advances have been significant. For periods, national teams have honored the name of their country, however, we, the fans, are in charge of choosing our favorite based on our own judgment of what we experienced.
So far Mexico has not tasted the delights of first place, but some squads in the history of the National Team have stood out for their desire and for how far they have taken the epic green shirt.
Mexico 1986
To this day, the results of this team are unrivaled. Under the leadership of Bora Milutinovic, they achieved what has become the upmost challenge for Mexico in a World Cup; to qualify for the fifth game. The historic presence in the quarterfinals remains on the pedestal of the great achievements of El Tri in their World Cup participations. Manuel Negrete’s great goal against Bulgaria will always be remembered.
United States 1994
After Argentina ’78, Mexico failed to qualify for two World Cups abroad: Spain ’82 and Italy ’90. To make matters worse, the ‘Cachirules’ scandal had marked the country in international competitions and the fans were hurt. The only consolation was to reach the World Cup in United States and that was achieved. With Miguel Mejía Barón as coach, El Tri faced purely European rivals and advanced for the first time to the Round of 16 outside Mexican territory.
France 1998
For many, it is the most enjoyable and emotional national team ever seen. Part of that perception is due to the fact that Manuel Lapuente’s boys had goals, reaction capacity and irreverence. The goals scored by Cuauhtémoc Blanco against Belgium and Luis Hernández against the Netherlands are among the most celebrated goals by Mexican fans in World Cups.
Germany 2006
Despite having competed in the weakest and most accessible group in its history, Mexico struggled to advance to the Round of 16. The match against Argentina will remain engraved in the memory of soccer fans for the approach proposed by Ricardo La Volpe, to fight tooth and nail for a place in the next round. Mexico qualified for the round of 16, but in second place in their group, which meant they had to face Argentina, another of the tournament’s favorite teams. In an intense match, the teams tied to one during regular time. Although Mexico dominated some moments of the match, a superb goal by Maxi Rodriguez during overtime eliminated the Mexican team from the tournament, making it —then— 20 years without reaching the quarterfinals since it was the host team in Mexico 1986.
Brazil 2014
After being on the brink of tragedy, Miguel Herrera straightened the rocky path inherited from the catastrophic management of José Manuel de la Torre to qualify via playoffs to the World Cup. Having stolen a point from the Brazilian national team in their home soil and playing at a good level after a qualifying round of terrible results earned Herrera a place in the hearts of many. After playing a great game against the Netherlands, the Dutch managed to turn the score around and Mexico was eliminated in a huge heartbreak.
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