The men’s national soccer teams of Mexico and the United States will meet on Oct. 15 at Estadio Akron in Jalisco, home of C.D. Guadalajara (“ Las Chivas”), one of three Mexican venues for the 2026 World Cup.
The highly anticipated “friendly,” an exhibition match, announced Monday, is notable for several reasons.
First, it will be just the second time in the past seven years that Mexico will host the United States on home turf. The other was a World Cup qualifier played in Mexico City in March 2022.
Moreover, the U.S. squad hasn’t played a friendly in Mexico since 2012, mainly because scheduling such games in the United States (where huge crowds of mostly Mexican fans attend) is financially beneficial to both teams.
Mexico desperately wants to end a seven-game winless streak against the United States that has stretched throughout the 2020s. During the run, Mexico has been beaten five times with two ties, and has been outscored 12-3. Historically, however, Mexico has dominated the fixture, winning 36 times to the United States’ 24.
A third factor of interest: Both teams will have new head coaches.
After scoring only once in three games of the Copa América tournament earlier this summer — ESPN called Mexico’s group-stage elimination “a disastrous early exit” — the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) said adios to its third men’s head coach in 19 months.
First it was Gerardo “Tata” Martino in December 2022, then Diego Cocca in June 2023 and then Jaime “Jimmy” Lozano last month — replaced by Javier “Vasco” Aguirre, who returns for his third stint as Mexico’s head coach.
The United States will have a new head coach too,, expected to be former Paris San German and Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino. . After the U.S. also suffered a staggering first-round Copa América exit, after which head coach Gregg Berhalter was fired.
The Oct. 15 game will kick off at 8:30 p.m. in the 49,850-seat Estadio Akron in Zapopan, a municipality of 1.5 million people in metro Guadalajara. Tickets went on sale Tuesday, but only for Banorte clients; general sales for tickets are yet to be announced.
The game will be an important part of preparations fo rthe 2026 World Cup, jointly hosted by Mexico, the U.S. and Canada starting on June 11 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Games will also be played at Estadio BBVA in Monterrey.
Ivar Sieniega, executive president of the FMF, said Monday there will be more “dress-rehearsal” games in Mexico leading up to the World Cup.
“Beyond the formal organizational efforts that are made within the framework of FIFA rules, we [want to] have a very intense preparation agenda for the World Cup here in Jalisco,” Chivas president Amaury Vergara said.
With reports from ESPN México, El Informador, Récord, AP and USSoccer.com
