The U.S. equity firm General Atlantic bought an estimated US $240 million worth of Emilio Azcarraga Jean's US $490 million company Ollamani, owner of Club América, to form a new ownership group called Grupo Águilas. (Club América / Facebook)
Mexico’s winningest soccer club has teamed up with a U.S. investment group in an alliance that will place Club América under the same umbrella as the NFL’s New England Patriots, bringing to five the number of Liga MX teams with significant U.S. funding.
The private equity firm General Atlantic agreed on Tuesday to purchase a 49% stake in Grupo Ollamani, which owns América, the 88,000-seat Estadio Banorte (formerly Estadio Azteca) and land adjacent to the stadium that will become the site of a shopping mall, a hotel and a parking structure.
New England Partiots owner Robert Kraft, shown here with his former star quarterback Tom Brady, has been contracted through his Kraft Group to provide services to Club Ameríca’s new ownership, which now includes a large minority share by the U.S. equity firm General Atlantic. (@betocabreraa/on X)
Reports indicate the alliance — which will include the Kraft Analytics Group, a subsidiary of the Kraft Group, owners of the Patriots and MLS soccer club New England Revolution — is based on an enterprise value of US $490 million. General Atlantic’s stake is estimated to be roughly US $240 million.
In a statement announcing the partnership, General Atlantic confirmed that “Ollamani will retain a 51% controlling stake and continue to oversee the group’s long-term strategic direction and vision, while General Atlantic will hold a 49% equity stake in Grupo Águilas.”
The new entity is named Grupo Águilas and will collaborate with Kraft Analytics Group “to enhance the use of data and analytics in connecting with more than 45 million fans (30 million in Mexico and 15 million in the United States).”
Immediately after the announcement on Tuesday, Grupo Ollamani shares rose 6% on the Mexican Stock Exchange to 86 pesos per share, before ending the trading day at 83.4.
Emilio Azcárraga Jean, the controlling shareholder in Ollamani, will serve as executive president of Grupo Águilas.
General Atlantic said Azcárraga’s presence will ensure “continuity of leadership and long-term strategic stewardship” as the board and management team work “to drive sustainable development across the club, stadium and real estate platform.”
Azcárraga said the partnership with General Atlantic — a global investor that has invested more than US $3 billion in Mexico since opening an office in Mexico City in 2015 — adds long-term vision and international expertise.
“This strategic alliance positions us strongly for our next stage of leadership as we expand our reach and deliver even more unforgettable experiences for fans in Mexico and beyond,” Azcárraga said in a statement.
In February 2024, Azcárraga, the former CEO and president of Telecom and broadcasting giant Grupo Televisa, separated his non-media assets including América and Estadio Banorte to form Ollamani.
The new partnership comes at a strategic time as the stadium is undergoing renovations ahead of the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Four other Liga MX teams enjoy significant funding from foreign entities:
Querétaro F.C. is backed by global investment firm Innovation Capital, chaired by Marc Spiegel.
Atlético de San Luis is part of Apollo Sports Capitol, the sports investment arm of New York City-based global asset manager Apollo Global Management, which recently completed the acquisition of Spanish giants Atlético de Madrid.
Mexican culture is famous for a reason. Here are our best photos, discussions, interviews and guides from 2025. (Inspired Pencil)
Whether you love food, history, art or music, Mexico has some of the very best in the world. So it’s only natural that we’d also have some fantastic coverage of these cultural treasures in 2025.
Blue is the warmest color
On Oaxaca’s humid Pacific coast, farmers rise before dawn to harvest “blue gold” from fields of indigo that once supplied royalty and ritual dress across the world. Follow the jicalete plant’s journey from muddy pilas and ox-drawn carts to shimmering dye vats at the Feria de Anil, where ancient techniques meet shibori patterns and global designers. See how a nearly lost tradition is coloring Oaxaca’s future deep, luminous blue as award winning photojournalist Anna Bruce takes a look at some of Mexico’s most authentic communities.
Netflix’s new series Las Muertas dives into the chilling true story of the González Valenzuela sisters, Mexico’s most infamous crime ring, who ran brutal brothels from the 1940s to the 1960s. Filmed across Mexico and based on Jorge Ibargüengoitia’s acclaimed novel, the show exposes corruption, exploitation and a hidden world of violence that shocked a nation. Discover the real history behind the horror before you hit play.
On a dusty ranch outside San Miguel de Allende, a 70-something potter shapes the last echoes of her family’s centuries-old craft with her bare hands. Meet Nicanora Valdez, the only remaining potter in a once-renowned lineage, molding riverbed clay into bowls that travel from rural Guanajuato to collectors’ shelves. Discover how friendship, memory, and fire keep her fragile legacy alive—one bowl at a time.
War, politics and betrayal in the northern territories
One decision redrew the map of North America—and still shapes the U.S.–Mexico relationship today. Travel back 176 years to the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, when Mexico lost 55% of its territory and nearly 80,000 Mexicans suddenly found themselves living in a new country. War, broken promises, and “manifest destiny” still echo in today’s politics and border debates, so find out where it all began.
Headed to Mexico for Día de Muertos, or celebrating from afar? Before you paint your face or post that cemetery photo, learn how locals in San Miguel de Allende balance living traditions, private grief, and public spectacle. This guide unpacks what’s welcome, what crosses the line, and how to honor the dead with genuine respect —while still enjoying the magic when the veil between worlds thins.
The architectural miracle in Mexico’s largest slum
Rising from one of Mexico City’s poorest districts, the Yancuic Museum is rewriting what access to art and culture looks like. With an origami-like façade, free admission, and exhibits on climate change and Nahua cosmogony, this luminous new space turns Iztapalapa into an unlikely cultural hotspot. Meet the award-winning museum where white-tailed deer, jaguars, and axolotls greet visitors amid a concrete sea.
Think you’re just living “normally” in Mexico City? From haggling over chiles in bustling mercados to piling tortillas, insects, mushrooms, and flowers onto your plate, you may be channeling your inner Mexica without even knowing it. This playful piece uncovers everyday customs — like pounding salsa in a molcajete and building spice tolerance — that keep ancient Tenochtitlán alive in modern CDMX life.
This year, Sarah DeVries had something to say. Then again, she usually does.
It’s certainly been a year.
Mexico News Daily’s most opinionate writer has some thoughts about everything that has gone on this year, and luckily for us, she isn’t afraid to share them.
To finish up 2025, we collected some of Sarah’s best, most insightful (and occasionally controversial) musings.
Should corporations be allowed to deny us access to water?
Ever courting controversy, Sarah asks how far Mexico should allow businesses to go, as the government takes action against obesity rates in the country.
Moving to Mexico used to be a clever workaround for US citizens squeezed by costs back home, but rising prices, shaky remote work, AI job threats, and local tensions mean that “gaming the system” is fading. Does community support matter more than cheap tacos now? Sarah investigates.
Sarah unpacks Mexico City’s anti-gentrification protests, pointing out that locals are really furious at soaring prices and uneven capitalism, but foreigners become the easy, visible target. With a messy mix of economic injustice, resentment, tourism policy, and some ugly xenophobia bubbling over in trendy neighborhoods, who is really doing the gentrifying and where does the blame lie?
Ever the campaigner, this personal tale of making ends meet on both sides of the border sees Sarah take aim at the economic policies of one Donald Trump. Will she approve of his plan to tax remittance payments back to Mexico?
Nothing says ‘safe for women’ like the President getting groped
When even Mexico’s president gets groped in broad daylight, what hope do the rest of women have on the street? See why Claudia Sheinbaum pressing charges could mark a turning point—and why being grabbed is never “just part of the job.”
Metro riders prepare to board at the Observatorio station — part of Line 1, which first opened to the public in 1969. (Daniel Augusto / Cuartoscuro.com)
As a long-term aficionado of the Mexico City Metro, I was more than happy to descend to the capital’s subway system to report a series of stories for Mexico News Daily this year.
My aim was to give readers insight — or additional insight — into the artistic vibrancy, commercial buzz and vital importance of the metro system, which opened in 1969 with a single line, but has since grown into an elaborate 12-line network.
In case you missed the stories earlier this year, or would like to revisit them, here is a brief overview of the series with a link to each of the three parts.
“The song ‘Sandunga’ by Puerto Rican ‘King of Reggaetón’ Don Omar blares from a television to a captive audience of commuters standing just behind an embossed yellow line.
Below the TV is a Maya stele from the Izapa archeological site in Chiapas featuring intricate bas-reliefs. This juxtaposition of culture — the ancient and the very modern — plays out on a platform of the Bellas Artes metro station in the subterranean heart of Mexico City.”
Since my first trip on the Mexico City Metro in 2011, I’ve been fascinated with the abundance of buying and selling that takes place in stations and on trains, although the number of vendors on board the so-called gusanos naranja (orange worms) has dwindled in recent years.
For this story I spoke to a number of metro-based vendors, including a teenage purveyor of hot meals who counts police officers among his customers, and a health store employee who sells products including shark cartilage capsules and “Praw Praw Sex” pills.
Here’s an extract:
“Amaranth bars, headphones, stuffed toys, jeans, Japanese peanuts, espresso machine coffee, skincare products, McDonald’s soft serve cones, churros, tortas gigantes, tacos, sexual enhancement pills, lingerie, newspapers, books and oh-so-many different kinds of chatarra (junk food).
All these products — and countless others — are available for purchase in the Mexico City Metro system.”
I also looked at how the metro fits into the broader public transport network in the Valley of Mexico metropolitan area, which includes Mexico City and many municipalities of México state.
Here’s an extract:
“In Mexico City, a public transit ride can be a quick zip up a metro line, and it can also be an hours-long, patience-testing odyssey (or ordeal) involving various modes of transportation. Commuters who come into central Mexico City from the surrounding metro area municipalities of México state face some of the longest trips.
One such person is Maura Hernández, a domestic worker who lives in the México state municipality of Nicolás Romero, located around 40 kilometers northwest of central Mexico City.”
Fiscal fuel theft, in which gasoline and diesel are brought into the country and declared as other liquid products to avoid paying taxes, was the center of a major scandal this year involving members of the Mexican Navy. (Alejandro Rodríguez/Cuartoscuro)
We are approaching the end of another big year of news in Mexico.
It was a year of significant change, as Donald Trump’s return to the White House had a considerable impact on Mexico, while the Mexican judiciary was overhauled via the country’s first-ever judicial elections.
It was a year of major floods and record rain, a year with fewer homicides but still obstinate insecurity, a year in which cartel honchos were sent abroad and an outspoken anti-crime mayor was killed at home.
As we did at the end of 2023 and 2024, Mexico News Daily looked back at the past 12 months and selected 10 news and politics stories that we believe were among the biggest of 2025. In some cases, they are stories that are ongoing, stories with no clear end or resolution in sight, and stories that we will continue to watch closely in 2026.
1. The return of Trump
The return of Donald Trump to the White House in late January marked the commencement of a new era in Mexico-U.S. relations — one marked by unpredictability and uncertainty as well as deepening security cooperation and economic interdependence.
President Sheinbaum proved herself to be a “Trump whisperer” in 2025. (Moisés Pablo Nava/Cuartoscuro)
The Mexican government has attempted to stave off, or at least mitigate U.S. tariffs, including through negotiation and the deployment of 10,000 National Guard troops to the northern border early in the year.
Beyond tariffs, the second Trump administration had a significant impact on Mexico in a range of ways this year.
Next year will be another crucial year in the bilateral relationship, not least because the USMCA review will take place. Ahead of the review process, Sheinbaum, Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney found the opportunity to discuss trade during a meeting at the FIFA World Cup draw in Washington, D.C., earlier this month.
A first bilateral in-person meeting between Sheinbaum and Trump appears likely to happen in 2026, providing the two leaders another opportunity to build on their rapport and perhaps iron out the trade and security issues that tarnished ties in 2025.
Nevertheless, President Claudia Sheinbaum described the democratic exercise as a great success.
The staging of the judicial elections was essential to rid Mexico’s judiciary of corruption, nepotism and other ills, or one of the biggest mistakes the country has ever made — depending on who you listen to.
Only about 13% of eligible voters in Mexico participated in the recent judicial elections. (Isabel Mateos Hinojosa / Cuartoscuro)
Whichever way you look at it, the judicial reform is well and truly underway, as the candidates who triumphed on June 1 have now been sworn in as judges, magistrates and Supreme Court justices. A second round of judicial elections will be held in 2027.
It is still too early to say whether claims that the popular election of judges will remove a vital check on government power and thus weaken the rule of law in Mexico are founded or not.
The impact of the judicial elections — for good and/or for bad — will become clearer in 2026.
* MORE READING ON THE JUDICIAL ELECTIONS: Shortly after the elections, we published an article on a critical report prepared by the Electoral Observation Mission of the Organization of American States. Read it here.
3. Floods devastate central and eastern Mexico
Mexico hasn’t experienced a major and destructive earthquake so far in 2025 — knock on wood — but other natural disasters, including hurricanes and wildfires, took a significant toll on the country.
The most impactful natural disaster this year was, however, the severe flooding that affected the states of Veracruz, Hidalgo, Puebla, San Luis Potosí and Querétaro in October.
Veracruz, Querétaro, Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí and Puebla were the states most affected by flooding in October. (@Claudiashein/X)
The federal government faced criticism over its initial response, with some flood-affected citizens asserting that authorities acted too slowly and provided insufficient assistance.
The government defended its response, and later highlighted that it provided some 7.6 billion pesos (US $411 million) in aid to more than 100,000 flood-affected households
The floods served as yet another reminder that Mexico is vulnerable to a wide range of natural disasters, some of which could become even more severe, and consequently more devastating, in the years ahead due to the impact of climate change.
* MORE READING ON THE FLOODS: On Oct. 20, we published a story about a floating seafood restaurant in Veracruz state that became an emblem of the devastating floods after breaking free of its moorings and traveling into the Gulf of Mexico and hundreds of kilometers along the coast.
While large protests against insecurity were held in cities across Mexico in November, the federal government has made significant progress in combating crime, according to official statistics.
The most closely-watched indicator of insecurity is the data on homicides, which increased to record annual highs early in Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s presidency before declining in the second half of his 2018-24 term.
In any case, preliminary data presented by the federal government on Dec. 9 shows that Mexico’s daily homicide rate declined 29% annually to 65.1 in the first 11 months of the year.
While the reduction is good news at face value, the fact remains that almost 22,000 lives were lost to violent crime between January and November. There is no doubt that the federal government still has a lot of work to do in a country where insecurity is the No. 1 concern of many citizens.
* MORE READING ON MEXICO’S SECURITY SITUATION: At Sheinbaum’s morning press conference on Dec. 9, security officials presented the latest data on homicides, arrests, drug seizures and firearm confiscations. Click here to read our report on that mañanera.
The Feb. 27 transfer was described as “historical” by Mike Vigil, a former DEA chief of international operations, and a “huge smack to cartels” by Ioan Grillo, a Mexico-journalist with extensive experience reporting on organized crime.
The Mexican government said that it took its own sovereign decision to send the cartel figures to the U.S., citing the risk of some of them being released from prison as a major reason for the transfer.
Mexico overrode ongoing appeal processes to extradite 29 cartel figures to the U.S. in February before sending an additional 26 in August. (Gobierno de México)
But claims persisted that the main reason the criminals were sent north was to appease a U.S. government that, throughout 2025, has maintained pressure on Mexico to combat organized crime.
* MORE READING ON THE EXTRADITED CARTEL FIGURES: The most notorious cartel figure that was sent to the United States this year is Rafael Caro Quintero, the convicted murderer of United States DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena. In July 2022, we reported on his capture in northern Mexico, while in September we covered Sheinbaum’s response to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s claim that Caro Quintero was sent to the U.S. on Trump’s orders.
6. Sheinbaum continues to make history
As Mexico’s first female president, Claudia Sheinbaum continued to make history in 2025, her first full year as leader of the world’s 11th most populous country.
The impact of seeing a woman leading the nation in such moments — no doubt an inspiration for tens of millions of Mexican girls and women — should not be underestimated.
In a short period of time, Sheinbaum has established herself as a highly-respected figure on the world stage, where she has advocated for things such as “economic well-being and cooperation for development,” greater integration of Western Hemisphere countries and Mexico’s Indigenous heritage.
All the while, the president has maintained an extremely high approval rating at home, although her popularity declined slightly after a difficult November that included the assassination of the mayor of Uruapan (see below) and large protests against insecurity.
* MORE READING ON CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM: Check out this profile of Sheinbaum that we published just after her historic victory in the 2024 presidential election.
While there was some controversy over the methodology used to calculate the reduction in poverty, federal officials, including Sheinbaum, held up the data as proof that the 4T’s “economic model” is working.
That model, the government says, prioritizes citizens’ well-being, including via the provision of numerous welfare and social programs.
With more than 13 million people exiting poverty during the AMLO years, the percentage of Mexico’s population living in poverty dipped below 30%, from almost 42% in 2018.
Nevertheless, Sheinbaum acknowledged that her government still has work to do.
“It’s obvious that with 30% of the population in Mexico living in poverty, we have to keep advancing,” she said on Aug. 14. ”
“…And we’re certain that we’re going to continue making progress. That’s why we talk about continuity and the advance of the fourth transformation,” Sheinbaum said.
* MORE READING ON POVERTY REDUCTION: On Aug. 15, we published this report, which notes that poverty reduction in poor southern states between 2018 and 2024 was not as great as in other states across the country.
8. Mexico’s fuel smuggling problem comes into focus
Crimes involving petroleum products, including the theft of fuel from pipelines, have long been a problem in Mexico.
In 2025, a fuel smuggling offense known as huachicol fiscal became the most notorious of those crimes, in part because it was at the center of a major corruption scandal.
In September, the crime was at the center of a major corruption scandal for the Mexican government as several members of the navy, including a vice admiral, were arrested in connection with a huachicol fiscal scheme.
The news was especially scandalous as the Mexican Navy is generally considered Mexico’s most trustworthy security institution.
Sheinbaum said in November that the incidence of huachicol fiscal has decreased, but acknowledged that the crime is an ongoing problem that the government must continue to combat.
Any further revelations that federal officials are involved in the crime would be a blow to the Sheinbaum administration and undermine its anti-corruption rhetoric.
* MORE READING ON HUACHICOL FISCAL: In October, we published this story based on a report by Reuters, which detailed how a petroleum products company from Houston teamed up with a notorious Mexican cartel to smuggle US $12 million of fuel into Mexico. In September, we reported on a customs reform that aims to prevent tax evasion, corruption and other forms of criminal activity at ports.
9. A productive rainy season alleviates droughts and replenishes reservoirs
At the end of April — before the commencement of the 2025 rainy season — 65.9% of Mexico’s national territory was in drought (46.5%) or said to be experiencing “abnormally dry conditions” (19.4%), according to the drought monitor published by the National Water Commission and the National Meteorological Service (SMN).
The Valle de Bravo reservoir, part of the Cutzamala system that provides water to Mexico City, was 93% full when this photo was taken in mid-October. It is now at over 98% capacity. (Crisanta Espinosa Aguilar / Cuartoscuro)
At the end of November, only 21.8% of the national territory was in drought (10.8%) or experiencing abnormally dry conditions (11.2%), representing a marked improvement.
A very productive rainy season in 2025 didn’t just alleviate drought conditions across much of Mexico, but also replenished many of the nation’s reservoirs, some of which were particularly parched. A case in point is the Cutzamala system of dams and reservoirs, in which water levels exceeded 97% of capacity in November, after having dipped to just 30% in April 2024, intensifying concerns about water availability in the Mexico City area.
Given the extreme importance of water to human life, to agriculture and to industry, the alleviation of drought and the replenishment of reservoirs as a result of a particularly rainy temporada de lluvias (rainy season) are more than deserving of their place among the biggest stories in Mexico in 2025.
* MORE READING ON THE RAINY SEASON: In July, we reported on SMN data that showed that June was Mexico’s rainiest month on record. Click here to read the story.
10. The mayor of Uruapan is assassinated
Among the many murders perpetrated in Mexico this year, the one that attracted the most attention was the brazen assassination of Carlos Manzo, the mayor of Uruapan, Michoacán.
The murder also prompted a renewed national conversation about violence in Mexico and how best it can be combated.
A public funeral was held for the slain mayor near the site of his assassination on Nov. 1. (Juan José Estrada Serafín/Cuartoscuro)
A day after Manzo was killed, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau reiterated that the U.S. “stands ready to deepen security cooperation with Mexico to wipe out organized crime on both sides of the border.”
The federal government continued to voice its opposition to any kind of U.S. military actions in Mexico, while Sheinbaum ruled out any return to the kind of “war” on drug cartels former president Felipe Calderón launched in 2006 with the help of the Mexican military.
The murder of the mayor by an alleged (and now deceased) 17-year-old gunman was symptomatic of the serious security problems that plague various parts of Mexico, including Michoacán, where Manzo was tragically killed while attending a solemn Day of the Dead event in the company of his young family.
President Claudia Sheinbaum made her Christmas remarks at the National Palace, accompanied by her husband, first gentleman Jesús María Tarriba. (Gobierno de México)
As families across the country gathered for Christmas Eve, President Claudia Sheinbaum released a video message from the National Palace celebrating unity and the enduring values that bind Mexicans together during the holiday season.
“To all Mexican families, we wish you a happy Christmas Eve and a happy Christmas,” Sheinbaum began. “We know that tonight in every corner of the country, there is hope … In a city neighborhood, in a small, rural town, on the coast and in the desert, in the north, in the center and in the southeast of our beautiful Mexico, there’s love and fraternity.”
Mensaje de Navidad 2025 de la presidenta Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo
The president described Mexicans as “a people who know how to gather around the table, who turn the simple into celebration, who embrace tightly and never forget their own.”
She also expressed gratitude to previous generations “who taught us to resist with dignity and to love with our souls,” while thanking the nation’s children “who remind us every day why it’s worth fighting.”
The president gave special recognition to those spending Christmas away from home, including Mexicans working abroad, members of the armed forces, police officers, healthcare workers, firefighters, and transportation workers. “In Mexico, we know how to accompany each other even at a distance,” she said.
Calling for national unity, Sheinbaum urged: “May this Christmas Eve embrace us as a nation, may the solidarity that defines us and the love for our land give us great strength.”
The president concluded with a reminder about priorities during the holiday season: “Let us remember that the most important thing is not the material, but values and love for others, love for family and love for our beloved Mexico.”
The next day, the President traveled to Acapulco for a short Christmas vacation. The destination is significant as the city — once Mexico’s tourism powerhouse — continues to recovery from the devastation of Hurricane Otis two years ago and more recently, Hurricane John.
It’d be absolutely terrifying to be in Lord Quetzalcóatl’s naughty list, wouldn’t it? (Andrea Fischer via Canva AI)
Okay, so, before you start making weird assumptions: No, Mexican children do not write Christmas letters to Quetzalcóatl. Kids never have, and probably never will. Although ancient Mexica families did observe a religious veneration of the Lord of the Cosmos, Christmas was not even a thing in the Americas. Not before the Conquest, that is.
However! There was a time when, in an effort to purge Mexico of the “capitalist traditions of the United States,” the Mexican government tried to replace Santa Claus — the terrible symbol of unfettered capitalism — with our beloved feathered serpent. How on Earth did that happen, you may ask? Here’s a rather unorthodox Christmas carol. Mexican style, for your delight.
Did Quetzalcóatl ever celebrate Christmas?
Anyone would’ve loved to receive gifts from Quetzalcóatl on Christmas Eve. (Andrea Fischer/MNA)
The easy answer is no, not exactly. However, the winter solstice has been regarded as a holy moment across millennia in several ancient civilizations. The Romans, for example, celebrated Saturnalia, the annual festival to celebrate “the rebirth” of the year, during the winter solstice in the Julian calendar. Romans held raging parties with bacchanals, honoring Saturn, the God of Time and Harvest. Curiously enough, it was celebrated on Dec. 25.
Believe it or not, this Roman (and pagan) celebration has more to do with the Christian Christmas than Jesus himself. “The choice of December 25 as the date of Jesus’ birth has nothing to do with the Bible,” researcher Diarmaid MacCulloch, professor of Church history at Oxford University,explained to the BBC, “but was a rather conscious and explicit choice to use the winter solstice to symbolize Christ’s role as the light of the world.”
In this part of the world, the Mexica Empire also celebrated the winter solstice. However, they honored the birth of Huitzilopochtli, the God of War, who was also the solar deity of the Mexica pantheon. So yes, indeed, a “new coming of the light” was celebrated in pre-Columbian times, as documented by the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo researchers. Culturally referred to asPanquetzaliztli, this festival commemorated the god’s birth and the triumph of light over darkness.
Priests, artisans and civilians alike participated in ritual battles, processions and the distribution of an idol made of corn dough (tzoalli). So yes, the Mexica Empire did host an annual celebration for the birth of their solar deity. It was not Jesus, of course, and it was not Quetzalcóatl, either — however enthusiastic PRI politicians were about it.
Quetzalcóatl, the great Lord of… Christmas?
So, no. Quetzalcóatl has nothing to do with Christmas. At all. For centuries, he was venerated in the Mexica Empire as “the great blower that energizes the cosmos,” as documented by UNAM researchers. He was also considered the creator and destroyer of “the great cosmic eras,” which positioned him in “a fundamental role in the founding myths of this pre-Hispanic culture.” The sacred feathered serpent was often depicted as the Lord of the Winds in the form ofEhécatl as well.
Given the importance Quetzalcóatl had in thepre-Columbian worldview in present-day Mexico, some PRI politicians in the 20th century decided it was a great idea to consolidate national identity through these ancient deities. In their minds, nothing screams Mexico like Quetzalcóatl on Christmas Eve (what?).
Who needs Santa Claus, anyway? (Wikimedia Commons)
It was 1930. The Minister of Public Education, Carlos Trejo y Lerdo de Tejada, agreed with former President Pascual Ortiz Rubio that it would be convenient to replace Santa Claus with Quetzalcóatl. “The idea was for a Mexican figure to instill in boys and girls a love for their race and culture,” according toGaceta UNAM magazine. On Christmas Eve, you may ask? Yes. Exactly on Christmas Eve, the day on which all Christians across the world celebrate baby Jesus’ birth, Mexican children were urged by authorities to write letters to the sacred feathered serpent.
Giving away toys in the name of our Great Lord Quetzalcóatl
On Dec. 23, 1930, the Ministry of Culture organized a historic gift-giving event at Estadio Nacional, located in Colonia Roma. A replica of the temple dedicated to Quetzalcóatl was built for the occasion. That night, former First Lady Josefina Ortiz gave away toys, clothing and candy to children in need — all in the name of Our Great Lord Quetzalcóatl. Who needs Santa Claus, anyway? At the end of the ceremony, the hymn to Quetzalcóatl was sung.
No one liked the Quetzalcóatl-themed Christmas celebration. In a country where 97.7% of the population identified as Catholic (at the time), the event was seen as a sacrilege: “the intervention of a pagan deity in a Catholic celebration,” perGaceta UNAM. Very few admitted they kind of liked the idea.
In the end, the idea simply didn’t stick, and poor Lord Quetzalcóatl silently returned to the Mexican holy pantheon.
The Museo Nacional de Antropología in Mexico City, site of one of the greatest art heists in history. (Wikimedia Commons/kornemuz)
The robbery at Mexico City’s National Museum of Anthropology remains one of the most astonishing events in art history. This is what happened.
It was Christmas Eve in 1985, and nearly everyone in Mexico City was celebrating with family and loved ones — almost everyone. On the outskirts of the capital, two young veterinary students had a very different plan in mind: robbing the National Museum of Anthropology.
Christmas shadows
Carlos Perches and Ramón Sardina, the two young veterinary students behind the 1985 heist. Perches was ultimately arrested and jailed. Sardina has never been apprehended. (Facebook/Metropolitano Aguascalientes)
For six months, the alleged perpetrators of the heist, Carlos Perches and Ramón Sardina, planned exactly how they would enter the museum. The two inspected every possible entrance and exit. They conducted a meticulous review of the museum’s most valuable and beloved artifacts and visited the museum at least 50 times to ensure that everything would be under control on the day of the robbery. Finally, during the December festivities, they decided to make their move.
According to the investigation afterward, they climbed over one of the museum’s walls and entered through an air duct. Despite the presence of nine guards on site, they managed to slip past security and reach the exhibition halls. At the time, the museum had no alarm system, and many artifacts were likely neither individually cataloged nor insured.
The Crown Jewel
It is estimated that Carlos and Ramón entered the building between 1:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m., a perfect three-hour window to remove around 140 pieces from the museum’s galleries. The precision of the selections made it clear they had studied not only every room, but also the artifacts themselves and their histories.
Among the objects taken were the famous Mask of Pakal, the Bat God Mask and the Obsidian Monkey Vessel, along with smaller pieces of gold jewelry and jade ornaments. That same morning — while children across the country were opening Christmas gifts —journalist Jacobo Zabludovsky announced the dramatic news that a gang of thieves had looted one of Mexico’s most important historical institutions.
Facing the Consequences
The director of Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) at the time, Enrique Florescano, stated that the robbery was not discovered until the next day, when the night guards switched shifts with the morning staff. He also maintained that the heist was not an isolated event but part of a wave of art crimes that had taken place in different countries throughout the decade.
The Mexican government partnered with the media to encourage citizens to report any information that might help locate the missing pieces. Shortly afterward, INTERPOL joined the search, and Mexico reinforced its borders to prevent the perpetrators from leaving the country.
No apparent motive
The Mask of Pakal, one of many of the art objects stolen in the heist so famous it would have been impossible to fence. (Wikimedia Commons/Wolfgang Sauber)
Nearly four decades later, the motive behind the theft remains a mystery. From a trafficking standpoint, the artifacts were so valuable that they would have been impossible to sell.
Their historical importance makes them priceless, and their uniqueness makes them perfectly traceable. Any attempt to traffic them would have immediately revealed the culprits. Likewise, it is improbable that any buyers existed; no collector, no matter how bold, would risk possessing such recognizable artifacts.
Aftermath of the museum heist
The National Museum of Anthropology did not close its doors and continued to receive visitors. Surprisingly, attendance actually surged. Thousands of people of all ages came to marvel at the empty display cases.
“After the robbery, the museum was visited much more than before. People came to see the empty cases, which relates to that saying: ‘You don’t know what you have until you lose it,’” actor Gael García Bernal remarked about a film (“Museo,” 2018) inspired by the historic event.
In the end, the artifacts did resurface — but in the most unexpected way. Four years after the robbery, Carlos Perches’ mother found the pieces while cleaning her son’s closet. Shocked and terrified, she went straight to the museum carrying suitcases filled with priceless artifacts, bringing the dramatic chapter to a close.
Lydia Leija is a linguist, journalist, and visual storyteller. She has directed three feature films, and her audiovisual work has been featured in national and international media. She’s been part of National Geographic, Muy Interesante, and Cosmopolitan.
If you’re looking for a white Christmas in Baja California, the San Pedro Mártir mountain range is your best bet. (CONANP)
For most of the Baja California peninsula, a white Christmas is but a dream. It’s downright warm in Los Cabos, for instance, where the average temperature on the holiday is 82 degrees Fahrenheit. In La Paz and Loreto, it’s a little cooler, but still in the 70s, while Ensenada, Mexicali and Tijuana all enjoy temperatures in the 60s, on average.
But there are a few places where it does snow, with the mountain range of San Pedro Mártir being the most likely to see snowflakes during the holiday season. During winter storms, the temperature can even drop below zero. Home to the highest peak on the peninsula, Picacho del Diablo, at over 10,000 feet in elevation, and an astronomical observatory at over 9,000 operated by Institute of Astronomy as the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), it’s not only possible that there’s a white Christmas in San Pedro Mártir, but that Santa’s sleigh is sighted by the observatory’s high-powered telescope in the skies above.
San Pedro Mártir is famed not only for seasonal snow but also for pine forests and abundant wildlife. (Baja Califoria Tourism)
Indeed, since San Pedro Mártir is also the oldest national park in Baja California, and is home not only to bighorn sheep and California condors, but also mule deer, it’s also possible in the event of a reindeer emergency that Santa could source a somewhat appropriate replacement.
But let’s be clear. In Tijuana, the “Gateway to Mexico” and the most populous city on the 760-mile-long Baja California peninsula, no one waits for Santa Claus. The children there don’t look for sleighs, but for men on Harley-Davidsons.
Outlaw bikers deliver toys in Tijuana
The Solo Ángeles motorcycle club was founded in Tijuana in 1959 by a former member of the Hell’s Angels. But as a member of the club once noted as a distinction: “Far from being ‘Hells Angels,’ they are ‘Only Angels.’”
That’s certainly true when it comes to giving away toys to disadvantaged children for Christmas. Since the mid-1980s, the Solo Angeles have organized an annual Tijuana Toy Run. This year marked the 40th anniversary of the event, with 5,000 toys delivered to kids after some members of the club, along with many motorcyclists from the U.S., caravaned to Avenida Revolución in the heart of downtown Tijuana.
Some 2,000 motorcyclists were part of the caravan this year. Through the decades, the number of toys delivered has probably been in the hundreds of thousands, a testament to the long-running charitable commitment of the club as well as to other participating motorcyclists from Tijuana and Southern California.
“We wish all the children of Tijuana the very best, and we will always be here participating and doing our part, as people should,” Jesús Moreno, the president of Solo Ángeles, told La Jornada.
Over 2,000 motorcyclists, led by the motorcycle club Solo Ángeles, were in Tijuana this year to hand out toys to local children. (Facebook)
The Baja California peninsula’s food angels
In addition to charitable organizations for gift giving, there are also many around the Baja California peninsula whose mission is to ensure everyone has enough to eat, and not just for the holidays either. This is a year-round commitment.
Each organization has its own story. For Feeding Los Cabos Kids (FLCK), it began with a single traveler. When Donna Brnjic visited Los Cabos in 2004, she immediately noticed that beyond the touristy areas of the destination, many children seemed to be hungry. Her solution was to take $100 and buy as much food as she could, which she then handed out.
Fast forward two decades, and FLCK is a non-profit ministered by Cabo Church, with 14 community kitchens serving some 20,000 meals monthly. The overhead of such an endeavor has become enormous — it costs US $24,000 per year to fund one kitchen — but thanks to generous donations (yes, donating is tax-deductible) and the work of volunteers, FLCK continues with its good work.
The same could be said for Alianza para la Seguridad Alimentaria (The Alliance for Food Security), headquartered in La Paz, although it operates on an even larger scale: feeding 80,000 people per month through its network of 90 independent community kitchens. This non-profit organization was founded in 2013 to address food insecurity in Baja California Sur. It does so, in part, through its Banco de Alimentos Sudcaliforniano, which utilizes food banks to distribute food to community kitchens located in poorer areas of the state.
In addition to donations, much of the food is recovered from hotels, supermarkets and restaurants. It’s food that is still good, but would be wasted were it not donated.
Seasonal blessings at peninsular churches
As in the rest of overwhelmingly Catholic Mexico, the holidays are a busy time at regional churches, from El Día de la Virgen de Guadalupe on Dec. 12 to El Día de Reyes on Jan. 6. The Baja California peninsula also offers some beautiful and historic churches to accompany the spiritual grace, from Tijuana’s Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe in the north, with its origins in the late 19th century, to Parroquia Misión de San José del Cabo in the south, which is related only in spirit to the city’s historical mission, but pays tribute with a tiled mosaic portraying the martyrdom of Jesuit missionary Nicolás Tamaral in 1734.
Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe in Tijuana is one of the Baja California peninsula’s most historic and architecturally magnificent churches. (Wikimedia Commons / Exprimidor)
It should be noted, however, that the peninsula is welcoming to visitors of all religious persuasions — with the houses of worship to prove it — and to those with none at all. Churches representing many Protestant denominations may be found, for example, as can Jewish synagogues, Muslim mosques and even Buddhist temples.
Which is to say, there are no prerequisites for visitors, other than an open mind, an open heart and an appreciation for the spirit of the season.
Chris Sands is the former Cabo San Lucas local expert for the USA Today travel website 10 Best and writer of Fodor’s Los Cabos travel guidebook. He’s also a contributor to numerous websites and publications, including Tasting Table, Marriott Bonvoy Traveler, Forbes Travel Guide, Porthole Cruise, Cabo Living and Mexico News Daily.
Don't do what this man did! Don't insult a country without bothering to learn anything about its culture and culinary traditions. (Richard Hart, Baker)
You probably saw it in your feed, in the news or on Mexico News Daily. British baker
Richard Hart dared to declare that el bolillo — Mexico’s beloved white roll — was “a low-
quality bread,” and Mexicans, collectively, felt as though he had mentado la madre (sworn at our mothers).
El bolillo is a cornerstone of Mexican cuisine. It holds together our tortas, becomes
dessert when buttered and sprinkled with sugar, and serves as comfort food after a
fright — a meme-worthy “toma un bolillo pa’l susto” moment (“have a roll for the scare”).
Mexico’s distinctive bolillos are not a low-class bread, despite what Richard Hart might think. (Instagram)
To us, this humble bread is delicious, trustworthy and endlessly comforting. As I explained in my earlier tortas article, el bolillo is a piece of national identity. So
when a foreigner — especially one who has invested in a Mexico City bakery, Green
Rhino — criticizes our bread; it feels personal, almost like a slight against us as a people.
In the article’s comment section on MND and across social media, many agreed with
Hart, especially foreign readers: “Mexican bread just isn’t good.” As we say here, en gustos se rompen géneros — to each his own. Even though UNESCO recognizes
Mexican cuisine as part of humanity’s intangible cultural heritage, doesn’t mean everyone must like it. But if you choose to live, invest or belong to a culture not your own, there’s a basic responsibility to learn from it, not just consume it.
Food, when viewed not merely as sustenance but as an expression of the land that
shapes it, becomes an X-ray of belief, economy and identity. Food is one of the best
ways to know a nation. Had Mr. Hart subscribed to Mexico News Daily and read our
articles about tortas and pan dulce, but also those on our economy and culture, he
might have understood that better.
If you, like Mr. Hart, dislike pan dulce or bolillos, I won’t try to change your taste buds.
But I do want to offer you some context on our bread culture, since it is a staple.
Historical dimension
Mexican bread stems from two distinct traditions. Pan dulce consists of reimagined
French, Spanish and Portuguese recipes that were adapted during the 19th and
20th century — with the arrival of modern and industrial ovens — into the dazzling
variety available in every local bakery today. As I’ve written before, the assortment of
sweet breads in a given town reflect the availability of regional ingredients.
Savory bread, meanwhile, is a Spanish inheritance. If you’ve traveled through Spain,
you’ll recognize our bolillos, teleras and molletes under different names — especially in
Andalusia.
Pan dulce, too, is a a beloved and delicious Mexican tradition. (Facebook)
During the Spanish Civil War, a significant wave of Spaniards migrated to Mexico. They
founded great universities, but also gifted us their bakeries, furniture shops and more. The best bakeries in the neighborhoods where my parents and I grew up were those
proudly run by “los gachupines.”
Economic dimension
The kind of bread Hart celebrates comes with a steep price tag. In Mexico City, a
supermarket sourdough loaf costs about 80 pesos; at Green Rhino, prices climb from
60 to 165. Mexico’s Ministry of Economy reports that the average monthly salary in
2025 was 6,430 pesos. Clearly, his bakery doesn’t cater to the average local.
His remark — “They don’t really have a bread culture. They make tortas with these ugly
white buns that are cheap and industrially made” — reveals something deeper. “Cheap”
and “industrial” aren’t aesthetic flaws; they’re symptoms of economic structures. When
quality food becomes a luxury good, the problem isn’t taste — it’s inequality. Un
bolillo costs about 5 pesos. His artisan loaf, 165. Taste is relative; economics are not. At
the same time, 5 pesos for a bolillo sounds like a great deal.
Raw material
“The wheat in Mexico isn’t good,” Hart claimed. “They don’t have much of a wheat-
growing culture, and what they use is overprocessed.” That’s not accurate. Wheat is
Mexico’s second most cultivated grain after corn. Though nonnative, it’s deeply rooted
in our agricultural landscape.
Here, wheat faced a deadly fungus, chahuistle, that destroyed crops. That word lives on
in our slang. When life falls apart, we say, “ya te cayó el chahuistle” (“the blight’s hit
you”). Breeding resistant strains was imperative. Since the Porfirian era, the Mexican
government has sought to enhance grain efficiency, particularly wheat, to supply the à la
française bakeries sprouting across the country.
After World War II, the Rockefeller Foundation, with the Mexican government, funded
research led by Norman Borlaug to improve cereal yields — a project that earned him the
1970 Nobel Peace Prize. The goal wasn’t to exploit or poison the world; it responded to
a genuine global desire to fight famine in the postwar world.
Technicalities
It is true that in high-altitude locales like Mexico City, bread recipes must be altered. (Unsplash/Alexis Tostado)
Discussing this debate with friends, Gabriela Espinosa, a professional chef and owner
of Delia in Bangkok, offered a technical perspective that humbled all of us who’ve
learned “baking” by streaming shows. In high-altitude Mexico City — 2,000 meters above
sea level — geography itself is the baker’s first enemy.
As she explained, “You have to adjust recipes for altitude.” Yeast behaves
unpredictably; lower air pressure makes dough rise faster but weaker. Water evaporates
quickly; kneading requires more effort. In short, imported recipes — from sea-level countries like France — must be rewritten with patience and local precision. Baking here
is not imitation; it’s adaptation.
We DO have bread culture!
The rebuttal to Hart’s insult has been loud and clear: Mexico does have a bread culture.
It may not be British, but that doesn’t make it any less of a culture. Most Mexicans begin
or end their day with sweet bread. When the temperature drops or rain hits the streets,
we turn instinctively to bread once again.
According to official data, each Mexican consumes 57 kilograms of wheat annually. Corn
is our soul, wheat still holds its ground. From Mexico City to Sonora, Guerrero to
Oaxaca, breads differ wildly. Their diversity reflects regional ingredients and two
centuries of evolution — reshaped by local tastes, customs and needs. You may find it
unfamiliar or even unappealing, but it stands as a testament to our enduring
gastronomic heritage.
Bread — both artisanal and industrial — remains central to our identity. Even Bimbo, the
world’s largest bakery, is a cultural symbol. Dismiss it as mass-produced if you will, but
it embodies our own definition of progress, mastery and national taste.
The “Before Green Rhino” bakeries in CDMX
I want to apologize in advance to all our subscribers who aren’t in CMDX, but Mr. Hart
started this centralization by establishing his bakery in Roma Norte. Jijitl! How I
imagine a laugh sounds in Nahuatl.
If you doubt the quality of bread in Mexico City, then clearly you’ve never been to Panadería Rosetta. (Rosetta)
Chef Elena Reygadas gave us, back in 2012, one of the most emblematic bakeries in
Colonia Roma. Beyond the loaves, which are a delight, her selection of pan dulce is
wonderful. My favorite used to be the rosemary bun.
If anyone understands dough, it is Italian chef Marco Carboni, who opened his first
restaurant in Mexico City in 2016: Sartoria. In 2019, Marco opened his shop, Bottega,
created to sell Italian products of extremely high quality. His loaves and seasonal
breads are exceptional, like everything else in the store. And try the espresso
cortado — it is my favorite in CDMX.
Odette opened in 2016 in Lomas de Chapultepec with the idea of making artisanal
bread that was delicious and felt like home. Their loaves are among my favorites, and
fortunately, you do not have to trek all the way to Lomas; there is a branch in Condesa.
City Market o La Comer
Hear me out: for quick supermarket bread that gets you out of a bind, City Market or La
Comer are among my favorites. It is good bread. It is not the same as bread from a
specialized bakery, but it is highly convenient.
Globo, Maison Kaiser, La Esperanza
Mr. Hart criticized commercial bakeries, and that part is understandable. If what you
want is a strictly artisanal loaf, this might not be your place. But if what you are looking
for is a reliable standard of quality and price, these are your bakeries. They are
specialized — unlike La Comer or City Market — and you can find them in several cities
around the country, with consistent quality.
Don’t pull a Richard Hart
Mexicans know this exhaustion: seeing our culture constantly equated with cheapness,
mediocrity or kitsch. We live under the shadow of stereotypes, like every culture outside
the Euro-American mainstream.
It’s okay to not like bolillos or mole poblano. It’s not okay to use cultural superiority as a reason. (Visit Puebla)
Outsiders aren’t expected to know us. But those who choose to build a life or business
here carry some responsibility to understand the land they now call home. You’re free to
dislike bolillos, mole, traffic or our refusal to say “no.” Just don’t use cultural superiority
as a seasoning.
Friends, don’t pull a Richard Hart. We pour thought, history and heart into every article to help you not just live here, but belong. Think of your time in Mexico as an opportunity to build a multicultural coexistence rooted in respect for our cultures and traditions.
Maria Meléndez is an influencer with half a degree in journalism.
