{"id":386634,"date":"2026-07-05T03:27:25","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T03:27:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/386634\/"},"modified":"2026-07-05T03:27:25","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T03:27:25","slug":"england-faces-mexico-on-hostile-turf-with-world-cup-glory-at-stake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/386634\/","title":{"rendered":"England faces Mexico on hostile turf with World Cup glory at stake"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

England famously found itself on the wrong side of World Cup history at Azteca Stadium, surrendering Diego Maradona\u2019s iconic \u201cHand of God\u201d<\/a> goal and another strike known as the tournament\u2019s \u201cmost beautiful goal.\u201d<\/a> <\/p>\n

Maradona and eventual champion Argentina eliminated England 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the 1986 World Cup, leaving the Brits to stew over their link to a soccer legend. <\/p>\n

England will return to Azteca Stadium on Sunday to take on World Cup co-host Mexico in a round-of-16 match kicking off at 5 p.m. PDT and airing on Fox and Telemundo.<\/p>\n

England coach Thomas Tuchel said during interviews<\/a> before their departure for Mexico that this will be a way to \u201cmake amends\u201d with the stadium that hosted a goal Maradona punched in with his fist, and \u201ckarma will come back for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Argentina's <\/p>\n

Argentina\u2019s Diego Maradona punches the ball past England goalkeeper Peter Shilton to score his \u201cHand of God\u201d goal during a 1986 World Cup match at Azteca Stadium.<\/p>\n

(Getty Images \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one of the most beautiful, most exciting matchups you can have \u2014 playing Mexico at the Azteca,\u201d Tuchel said during a news conference after defeating the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the round of 32.<\/p>\n

But the road to Azteca Stadium hasn\u2019t been easy for England.<\/p>\n

England enters this matchup after a hard-fought victory over Congo. The African team took the lead and had chances to extend it, but ultimately paid dearly for squandering those opportunities. Top England scorer Harry Kane stepped up with two decisive goals that helped his team advance. It was England\u2019s first World Cup victory after trailing 1-0 since the 1966 final, which the English team won as a tournament host.<\/p>\n

The English have to contend with not only the ghost of Maradona\u2019s two goals, but also the altitude in Mexico City, which is about 7,350 feet above sea level. <\/p>\n

Mexico has lost only two of 89 matches at Azteca Stadium, winning 70 and tying 17. The last time it lost an official match there was a 2-1 defeat to Honduras in a 2013 World Cup qualifier.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere will be many obstacles \u2014 the altitude will be a major disadvantage because we can\u2019t acclimate to it,\u201d Tuchel said. \u201cLet\u2019s hope that when we face difficulties along the way, we\u2019ll find the answers.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Mexico <\/p>\n

Mexico players celebrate after the team\u2019s World Cup win over Ecuador at Azteca Stadium on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

(Luke Hales\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Tuchel noted his team got accustomed to heat and humidity while training in the United States.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the end of the day, it\u2019s a soccer game,\u201d said England\u2019s Marcus Rashford, who also plays for Manchester United. \u201cWe\u2019ve all been playing soccer since we were kids, and we\u2019ve played in different environments and under different conditions \u2014 some more difficult than others, some in terrible places. But it\u2019s up to us to find a way to win and to work as a team.\u201d<\/p>\n

England expects to face an intense atmosphere, with the majority of more than 80,000 fans backing Mexico.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one of the great stadiums in soccer. Playing there is a blessing. Mexico is probably the favorite. They\u2019re at home, playing on their home turf; it will be a big challenge for us, but we\u2019ll be ready,\u201d England\u2019s Marc Guehi told the BBC.<\/a> <\/p>\n

The match also will pose a significant challenge for the Mexican team, which has not conceded a goal during the World Cup but will face an English side that excels in aerial play, with lethal scorers like Kane and Jude Bellingham. Mexico\u2019s defensive performance has been credited to the direction of Rafa M\u00e1rquez, a former Barcelona player who is one of Mexico\u2019s assistant coaches.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re high-caliber players who can make a difference at any moment, and we have to take advantage of playing at home and maintain our current level of play because no one has given us anything for free,\u201d said veteran backup goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, another key voice supporting Mexico\u2019s defensive effort.<\/p>\n

Less than 72 hours before the game, FIFA explored moving the evening kickoff to noon local time \u2014 a change that would have completely disrupted the sporting, logistical and emotional planning of both teams.<\/p>\n

FIFA first weighed the unprecedented change reportedly because of the threat of thunderstorms. The Athletic and media outlets covering both teams later reported security concerns after the death of four Mexico fans during round-of-32 postgame celebrations triggered the potential change, but both team pushed back, and Mexico\u2019s security officials assured FIFA they could keep fans safe. FIFA relented and did not change the start time.<\/p>\n

\"Mexico's <\/p>\n

Mexico\u2019s \u00c1lvaro Fidalgo celebrates after scoring against Czechia during a World Cup match at Azteca Stadium on June 24.<\/p>\n

(Silvia Izquierdo \/ Ap Photo\/silvia Izquierdo)<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one wants a celebration \u2014 such an important moment, a once-in-a-lifetime moment \u2014 to turn into a sad occasion because of certain things. We don\u2019t want anyone to lose a loved one,\u201d Mexico midfielder \u00c1lvaro Fidalgo said.<\/p>\n

Contrary to what many experts expected, Mexico has breezed through the group stage and the second round at home. Coach Javier Aguirre has eased some of the pressure on himself by leading the team to its fifth World Cup match \u2014 a feat Mexico had not achieved in seven consecutive World Cups. Two of those seven failed attempts came under Aguirre\u2019s leadership: in 2002, when Mexico lost to the United States, and in 2010, when it lost to Argentina \u2014 both in the round of 16.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll try to keep this momentum going at home,\u201d Aguirre said. \u201cWe\u2019ll try to play a complete game.\u201d<\/p>\n

With the support of its fans and a sense of hope that grows with every game, the Mexican team will seek to match its best performances from 1986 and 1970 \u2014 World Cups it hosted, though with fewer participating teams.<\/p>\n

\"Mexico's <\/p>\n

Mexico\u2019s Ra\u00fal Jim\u00e9nez celebrates after scoring against South Africa during a World Cup match at Azteca Stadium on June 11.<\/p>\n

(Carl Recine \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have to let them know that we\u2019re just as good,\u201d said Ra\u00fal Jim\u00e9nez, Mexico\u2019s leading scorer. \u201cThat we can compete on equal terms, we can play a good game, and we have the support of the fans. It doesn\u2019t matter which goalkeeper is in front of us \u2014 if we put it in the corner, no goalkeeper can stop it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Advancing past England would mark the first time Mexico has defeated a past world champion in a knockout round, and it would also be the first time the Mexican national team has strung together two knockout-round victories in a World Cup after beating Ecuador in the round of 32. <\/p>\n

Mexico defeated past world champions France and Germany in 2010 and 2018, respectively, but those wins came in the group stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a match everyone always dreams of. Being in the Round of 16 at the Azteca \u2014 not just saying it, but even thinking about it \u2014 is incredible,\u201d Fidalgo said. \u201cWe have to rise to the occasion.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"England famously found itself on the wrong side of World Cup history at Azteca Stadium, surrendering Diego Maradona\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":386635,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[155875,155878,155879,11708,11154,8862,2194,1073,48,52,51,47,50,49,22169,154297,2457,155877,16408,12967,155876],"class_list":["post-386634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-african-team","tag-altitude","tag-diego-maradona","tag-england","tag-fan","tag-fifa","tag-goal","tag-home","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-match","tag-mexican-team","tag-mexico","tag-potent-azteca-stadium","tag-round","tag-tournament","tag-world-cup-glory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/386634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=386634"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/386634\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/386635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=386634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=386634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=386634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}