GUADALAJARA, Mexico — Three and a half years after its biggest failure on the World Cup stage in half a century, the Mexican national team needed only two games to advance to the knockout round of this year’s tournament as winner of Group A.
Mexico’s defense held off a spirited final push by South Korea, earning a 1-0 win on Thursday night at Guadalajara Stadium in front of a fiery announced sellout crowd of 45,522.
Goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu made a mistake in the 50th minute, failing to stop what appeared to be a simple cross and bobbling the ball. That allowed Mexico’s Luis Romo to easily tap the ball into the net and claim a 1-0 lead.
South Korea put pressure on the Mexican team throughout the game. Late in the scoreless first half, Jae-sung Lee came close to giving South Korea the lead. Mexico coach Javier Aguirre hoped his team would shake off nerves following the emotional opener at Azteca Stadium and show more bite in its second game against South Korea, but his team didn’t have much power behind its attack during the game’s first 45 minutes.
Mexico goalkeeper Raúl Rangel blocks a shot from South Korea’s Son Heung-min during their World Cup match at Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.
(Natacha Pisarenko / Ap Photo/natacha Pisarenko)
The crowd in Guadalajara grew frustrated and began booing the Mexican national team’s performance at the end of the first half.
Mexico, however, won back their cheers when it capitalized on South Korea’s costly mistake and converted it into a goal.
El Tri earned a win without any other goals thanks, in part, to a great night by goalkeeper Raúl Rangel, who stopped a header by Cho Gue-sung in the 87th minute. Captain Edson Álvarez helped turn away South Korea’s attack late, holding up relatively well despite having left ankle surgery during the past year.
South Korea finished controlling possession 58% of the time, but it only earned two shots on target.
Mexico was coming off a comfortable 2-0 victory over South Africa, while the South Koreans had defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, marking their first World Cup opening-match win since 2010.
During the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Mexico was eliminated in the group stage for the first time since 1978, breaking a streak of seven consecutive appearances in the knockout rounds. However, playing on home soil, the team’s goal is to emulate El Tri’s achievements in 1970 and 1986, when they reached the quarterfinals — the country’s best World Cup finish.
Due to the new 48-team format, Mexico would need to win two knockout-round matches and reach a sixth game to realize its goals.
Mexico’s Luis Romo celebrates with his teammates after scoring during a match against South Korea at Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.
(Natacha Pisarenko / Associated Press)
After the win over South Korea, Mexico will close out group play against Czechia at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City on Wednesday. El Tri will get to play the first two games of the knockout round — should it win the first one — at Azteca Stadium, a venue where it has never lost a World Cup game.
South Korea has four points and will be favored when it plays South Africa Wednesday in Monterrey. If South Korea wins the match, it would be the Group A runner-up and advance to play the Group B runner-up on June 28 at SoFi Stadium.
Goalkeeper Raúl Rangel was 18 years old and playing for Chivas de Guadalajara’s youth academy the last time Mexico faced South Korea in a World Cup match in 2018.
Three years ago, when asked who might be the next great goalkeeper for the Mexican national team, Rangel named himself ahead of veteran Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa. A bold statement for a player who was just making his professional debut.
On Thursday, the 26-year-old goalkeeper will defend El Tri’s goal during his second World Cup match at Guadalajara Stadium — where he usually plays home games with Chivas — when Mexico takes on South Korea at 6 p.m. PDT on Fox/Telemundo in the second match of Group A.
“I told everyone, ‘I see myself at the World Cup.’ Some people laughed,” Rangel recalled. “I’d been picturing myself on the national team for three years.”
Mexico’s Julian Quinones celebrates with teammates after scoring during a World Cup match against South Africa at Azteca Stadium on June 11.
(Luke Hales / Getty Images)
Mexico and South Korea won their opening matches — El Tri against South Africa and the South Koreans against the Czech Republic — so the winner of this match will take first place in the group and secure its spot in the next round. The incentive is clear for Mexico, as the group winner will play the next two knockout rounds at Azteca Stadium, where El Tri has never lost a World Cup match.
The second-place team, on the other hand, would have to travel to Los Angeles for its next match. While the opponent could be tougher, Los Angeles would be a comfortable destination for South Korea — it has a strong fan base in L.A. and wouldn’t have to contend with Mexico City’s high altitude.
After an opening match in which Mexico coach Javier Aguirre acknowledged that the pressure of the first day affected the team’s performance and that the emotional atmosphere at Azteca Stadium had “weighed heavily” on several of his players, the coach and the players hope to deliver a sharper performance against South Korea.
“Yes, there was a bit of nervousness, a bit of fear,” Mexico midfielder Erik Lira admitted after the opener.
“We need to be more decisive; the win has calmed the nerves we’ve had over the last few days,” Mexico defender Israel Reyes said.
But if Mexico wants to excel, it needs not only to put its nerves behind it but also to improve tactically. Mexico, a co-host of the tournament alongside the United States and Canada, is aiming to reach the knockout stage of the World Cup and advance beyond the round of 16. El Tri has won only one match in the knockout stage — in 1986, when it defeated Bulgaria 2-0 at Azteca Stadium.
“I think that mental aspect has been missing for us. We have to believe that we can achieve great things,” Rangel said. “I truly believe I’m going to be a champion with Mexico. We have a responsibility as hosts.”
The match will be played at Guadalajara Stadium, 5,138 feet above sea level, and will mark the first time Mexico has played a World Cup match in the city.
Chivas, Mexico’s most popular club team, has the most players on the national team with five and all of them will get to play their second World Cup match on their club’s home turf. Brian Gutiérrez, the Mexican American who played a key role in the opener as South Africa was hit a with a red card while trying to stop him, and veteran Roberto Alvarado, who recorded an assist against South Africa, joined Rangel as Chivas starters in the opener. Bench players Luis Romo and Armando González, who also saw action in the opener, also play for Chivas.
Mexico captain Edson Álvarez challenges South Africa’s Themba Zwane during a World Cup match at Azteca Stadium on June 11.
(Carl Recine / Getty Images)
Aguirre will have to make at least one lineup change against South Korea, with Edson Álvarez replacing César Montes, who is serving a red-card suspension. Álvarez is coming off an injury and it’s unclear how he will navigate the stress. Aguirre is also expected to give playing time to 17-year-old prospect Gilberto Mora in midfield — possibly in place of Gutiérrez — and to bring in Jorge Sánchez for Reyes at fullback.
South Korea arrives with a mix of European experience and a hunger for glory. LAFC star Son Heung-min is playing in his fourth World Cup and scored against Mexico in 2018. Kim Min-jae of Bayern Munich has been a rock in defensive midfield, while Paris Saint-Germain’s Lee Kang-in — who, interestingly, played under Aguirre at Mallorca — is a constant threat in creating plays. Joining them is Hwang In-beom of Feyenoord in the Netherlands.
The South Koreans have also been training for weeks at Verde Valle, Chivas’ training facility, which has allowed them to acclimate to the altitude. With the support of the Mexican crowd, they won their World Cup opening match against the Czech Republic at Guadalajara Stadium.
“It was like playing a game in Seoul,” Hwang said after the match, thanking Guadalajara for its support.
“[Mexico] is a good team, but, as you’ve just seen, we can take on anyone,” Hwang said after his team rallied from a 1-0 deficit to beat the Czech Republic.
The week, however, was not without controversy for the South Korean team, as the squad barred press from their home country after audio of media criticizing the mandatory military service exemption granted to Son was leaked. The audio also included criticism of coach Hong Myung-bo.
South Korea and Mexico faced off in September ahead of the World Cup, tying 2-2 in Nashville.
The World Cup stage, however, will be different and brings immense pressure.
History tends to repeat itself at the World Cup. Such is the case with Mexico and South Africa, two teams that will face off in the World Cup opening match for the second time in history, just as they did in Johannesburg on June 11, 2010. The score that night was 1-1.
Many still remember Siphiwe Tshabalala and his powerful shot into the top corner that beat Mexican goalkeeper Óscar Pérez, and a celebration that remains etched in the collective memory of the soccer world. Unfortunately for the South African team that night, Rafa Márquez equalized for El Tri with 11 minutes remaining during what turned out to be a disappointing World Cup for the host nation.
Sixteen years later, the 2026 World Cup kicks off, curiously enough, with the same matchup, but with the roles reversed. Mexico is now the host at Azteca Stadium, known during this competition as Mexico City Stadium, at 7,216 feet above sea level. It will be the third World Cup the venue has hosted.
“It won’t be easy at all,” South Africa coach Hugo Broos said last December upon learning his team would debut against one of the hosts. “It’s a great thing to play in front of 80,000 people. We have nothing to lose.”
Mexico’s Giovani Dos Santos jumps on the back of Rafael Marquez after Mexico scored against South Africa during a World Cup group match on June 11, 2010, in Johannesburg, South Africa.
(Michael Steele / Getty Images)
On the Mexican side, the similarities to 2010 are striking — and not necessarily for the right reasons. Coach Javier Aguirre is back on El Tri’s bench — the same coach who led that campaign in South Africa — which, at first glance, might seem curious, though in practice it reflects the stagnation of a soccer team that has gone eight consecutive World Cups without advancing past the round of 16.
Former Barcelona player Márquez, who scored the equalizer, also remains connected to the national team, now as an assistant coach, with the mandate to take the reins of the team once the Aguirre era concludes after the World Cup. The squad has seen more than a dozen coaches come and go since 2010, including a qualification for Brazil 2014 that nearly ended in tragedy before a goal by the United States rescued the Mexican team and sealed its admission into the tournament.
“Javier [Aguirre] was a firefighter in 2002, he was a firefighter in 2010 and he stepped in as a firefighter again then — it’s the same old story,” said John Sutcliff, a journalist who has covered Mexico for more than 36 years. “[The federation officials] aren’t working in the best interest of the national team. There’s a lot of interest in bringing in foreigners [to the Mexican league] for business purposes and we don’t have players in Europe’s top leagues.”
Mexico’s recent record speaks for itself. It was eliminated in the World Cup round of 16 in 2010 by Argentina, by the Netherlands in 2014, by Brazil in 2018 and failed to even advance past the group stage in Qatar in 2022. Considered the “Giant of CONCACAF,” Mexico has remained dominant in its region since 2010, with five Gold Cups, although it has lost ground to the United States in the Nations League.
Outside the region, its participation in 2010 has been limited mainly to two editions of the Copa América held on U.S. soil, in which it has failed in both, reaching the quarterfinals in 2016 and being eliminated in the group stage in 2024.
“I think it’s been a roller coaster ride over these 16 years; for a moment it seemed like it was making progress, but then there were spectacular crashes,” said Gibrán Araige, a journalist who has followed El Tri through several World Cup cycles.
Mexico’s Raúl Jiménez celebrates with teammates after scoring against Serbia during a friendly at Nemesio Diez Stadium on June 4 in Toluca, Mexico.
(Agustin Cuevas / Getty Images)
For Araige, the level of the 2010 squad is similar to the current one, with players who are not yet established but have solid European experience.
Of the 26 players called up by Aguirre, 10 play in Europe, but few play for elite clubs or get significant playing time on their teams, mostly hampered by injuries, as is the case with Santi Giménez (AC Milan, Italy), César Huerta (Anderlecht, Belgium), Luis Chávez (Dinamo, Russia) and Edson Álvarez (Fenerbahçe, Turkey).
For its part, South Africa has not made significant progress since 2010.
After being eliminated in the group stage, finishing behind Uruguay and Mexico in a tournament held in its own country, it became the first host nation in a World Cup to fail to advance past that stage — a record that Qatar matched in 2022.
Bafana Bafana failed to qualify for the next three World Cups. In fact, this is the first time they have qualified since 2002, as they did not have to qualify in 2010, having hosted the tournament.
They were eliminated as group runners-up behind Ethiopia on the road to Brazil in 2014, they finished last in their group on the road to Russia in 2018 and finished second behind Ghana in the qualifiers for Qatar in 2022.
South African players run during a World Cup training session at Estadio Hidalgo on June 3 in Pachuca, Mexico.
(Manuel Velasquez / Getty Images)
They have also lacked consistency in the Africa Cup of Nations, missing the 2012 and 2017 editions.
Broos, who took over as South Africa’s head coach in 2021, sought to instill discipline and relied on local talent, which was vital in securing a spot in this year’s World Cup. During the qualifying round, South Africa won its group by finishing ahead of Nigeria and advanced despite starting the campaign with a loss due to an ineligible player used in a match against Lesotho.
Broos faced criticism for strategic errors early on, but ultimately built a competitive team that achieved historic qualification, aided by nine direct World Cup spots in the expanded tournament field.
“It’s a truly excellent group of players. We got through a very tough qualifying phase, which I think helped polish the team,” said Mark Gleeson, a journalist specializing in African soccer.
For Gleeson, South Africa missed a major opportunity to strengthen its league by failing to retain investors and wealthy clients after the 2010 World Cup and continued to operate in the same way — a trend reflected in the league’s stagnation and the scarcity of talent playing abroad.
Lwethu Makhanya (Philadelphia Union, USA), Ime Okon (Hannover 96, Germany), Mbekezeli Mbokazi (Chicago Fire, USA), Sphephelo Sithole (CD Tondela, Portugal) and Lyle Foster (Burnley, England) are among the few South African players competing abroad for a national team reliant on domestic soccer.
South Africa huddle during a training session at Estadio Hidalgo on June 3 in Pachuca, Mexico.
(Manuel Velasquez / Getty Images)
However, with the World Cup’s new 48-team format, the task of advancing proved less daunting for teams in the qualifying phase and at the World Cup, there will also be more opportunities to advance beyond the group stage because the best third-place finishers move on. That math could benefit South Africa even if it loses its opening match.
Should Bafana Bafana lose to Mexico, they would have to beat the Czech Republic in their second match on June 18 in Atlanta and would likely play for qualification on June 24 against South Korea in Monterrey.
“The Czechs are among the weakest in Europe, and there’s a good chance of beating them. Furthermore, South Korea is well below its own historical standards, as was evident in March with very poor results in high-pressure matches,” Gleeson said.
To prepare for the altitude in Mexico City, Broos, a former Belgian player who competed in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, brought his team in early and, starting May 30, held training camp in Pachuca, a city at higher in elevation than the capital. Several of his players are already accustomed to some altitude from playing for clubs in Johannesburg, at 5,751 feet.
“South Africa has a chance; we can compete,” Tshabalala said in an interview after the draw. “I think the pressure will be on Mexico because they’re the hosts. That gives us a real opportunity to pull off an upset.”
A scoreless draw against Nicaragua in Johannesburg days before the World Cup isn’t exactly encouraging, but it also fits with the team’s expectations and the mindset of “having everything to gain and little to lose.”
“We have to enjoy it, and when you enjoy something, you can achieve great things,” said Broos.
