One win away from the quarterfinals in the FIFA Under-17 men’s World Cup, the Mexican team saw its run ended in painful fashion: a 5-0 loss to Portugal on Tuesday in Doha, Qatar.
Though the Mexican players departed with some new friendships (details below) the lopsided defeat sparked a slew of negative reactions online, and abruptly ended a campaign that had days earlier shimmered with promise.
Mexico is going back home after getting eliminated from the U-17 World Cup and the Japanese players gave them a special farewell shortly before they left the hotel.
This is the most wholesome story of the year. 🥺
“Viva Mexico y Viva Japon”. 🇲🇽❤️🇯🇵pic.twitter.com/kb0Y71ksx2
— All Fútbol MX 🇲🇽 (@AllFutbolMX) November 19, 2025
After narrowly advancing with a third-place group finish, Mexico began the knockout rounds with an eye-catching 5-4 victory in penalty kicks over Argentina after the score was tied 2-2 through regulation.
Though there are no world rankings for under-17 teams, the powerful Argentine squad had coasted to a 3-0 record in round-robin play by outscoring its opponents 11-2.
Mexico’s victory over the pre-tournament favorite was viewed as huge, and it also provided two of the tournament’s biggest highlights: Mexican goalkeeper Santiago López saving the opening penalty kick, and then converting the deciding kick himself.
Coached by Carlos Cariño, Mexico impressed many by advancing out of a tough group as one of the best third-place teams and then knocking out the South American giants.
However, it all went up in smoke in the Round of 16 against Portugal.
Mexico fell behind 1-0 on a penalty kick in the 15th minute, and things got worse 20 minutes later when José Navarro, a talented but aggressive defender, was given a red card after a video review for violent conduct — forcing Mexico to play a man down the rest of the match.
Portugal went up 2-0 early in the second half, then added three more goals in a disastrous final 10 minutes for Mexico that included the expulsion of López. The Mexican goalkeeper’s frustration boiled over in the 88th minute when he pushed an opposing player — reducing Mexico to nine men by the final whistle.
The beginning of a beautiful friendship
While memes and satirical commentary swept Mexican social media in response to the loss, another story unfolded beyond the scoreboard.
In a poignant post-match scene, Japan’s under-17 team, tournament companions at the team hotel, bid farewell to Mexico with applause, gifts and handwritten messages.
The friendship between the teams quickly became a talking point worldwide.
“The gesture went viral on social media thanks to a video showing the Japanese and Mexican soccer players exchanging words, gifts and applause,” one report noted. “The farewell became a symbol of respect and cultural unity, showing that youth football is also a space for solidarity and shared learning.”
Many players for Japan — set to play in the quarterfinals against Austria on Friday — spoke warmly of the support received from the Mexican squad.
For Mexico’s players, the exchange allowed them to return home with memories of sportsmanship and camaraderie.
The performance by the under-17 men’s team came just weeks after Mexico’s women’s team also played in the under-17 World Cup, in Morocco.
After losing 1-0 to the Netherlands in the semifinals, Mexico rebounded in the third-place game with a 3-1 victory in penalty kicks over Brazil following a 1-1 regulation tie.
South Korea beat the Netherlands 3-0 in the title match.
With reports from Infobae, ESPN México, Récord and CONCACAF
