President Claudia Sheinbaum on Monday presided over the official “sendoff ceremony” for the national soccer team, urging the members of El Tri to represent Mexico with pride.
Sheinbaum led the players and coaches in a pledge of allegiance and presented the national flag to veteran goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, who will be attending his sixth World Cup as a member of Team Mexico.
The ceremony took place at the training grounds of the Mexican Soccer Federation’s High Performance Center in southern Mexico City. Also attending were owners and executives from teams in Mexico’s professional soccer league, special guests, government officials and members of the Army and the National Guard
Upon handing the flag to Ochoa, Sheinbaum said to the gathering: “I entrust this flag to your patriotism, a flag that symbolizes your independence, honor, institutions, our people and the integrity of your territory. Do you pledge to honor and defend it with loyalty and steadfastness?”
El Tri responded with a resounding “We do!”
In her brief address, Sheinbaum wished the team great success in the World Cup, Mexico’s 18th appearance in the global soccer tournament, adding that she trusts El Tri “will fulfill your pledge for the good of the people and the good of the nation.”
“May your example inspire millions of Mexicans to believe in the strength of sport and the power of their dreams,” she said.
Sheinbaum then posed for an official photo with the 26 players, coach Javier Aguirre, the entire training staff and soccer federation officials, after which she proclaimed “¡Viva México!” (“Long live Mexico!”). “¡Viva!” responded the players.
The national team was not granted a sendoff ceremony ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar as then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador — a noted baseball fan — declined to arrange one, interrupting a tradition that had begun in 1998.
El Tri has the honor of playing in the inaugural World Cup match on Thursday against Group A rival South Africa in Estadio Azteca, renamed Mexico City Stadium for the duration of the tournament.
This will be the second time these two teams face off in the opening match of a World Cup tournament, exactly 16 years after the first. The two sides played to a 1-1 draw in Johannesburg on June 11, 2010, when South Africa was the host nation. Rafael Márquez — Aguirre’s top assistant coach who has already been designated to succeed “El Vasco” after the conclusion of the World Cup — scored the lone goal for Mexico.
Mexico’s other opponents in Group A are South Korea and the Czech Republic. El Tri takes on the Koreans in Guadalajara on June 18 and faces Czechia back in Estadio Azteca on June 24.
As co-host of the tournament along with Canada and the United States, Mexico will host 10 additional matches, a total of five in Mexico City and four each in Monterrey and Guadalajara.
With reports from La Jornada, Record and Heraldo de México
