In the recent Copa América, Mexico scored only two goals in three matches, finishing third in their group and missing out on qualification. Following the tournament, renowned AZTECA Television journalists Martinoletti and Luis García unleashed their criticism, directly targeting all the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) executives. They claimed that the officials’ sole accomplishment has been to disgrace Mexican football.
This is Mexico’s second consecutive major tournament failure, following their elimination in the group stage of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, where their streak of reaching the Round of 16 came to an end. In the Copa América, Mexico, who had reached at least the quarterfinals in eight of their previous ten appearances and finished in the top three on five occasions, now finds itself as a laughingstock. Mexican media laments the damage done to the country’s international reputation, image, and standing in football, holding the FMF responsible for the humiliation, stating that “the only thing they have done is bring shame to Mexican football.”
According to the media, what went wrong with the federation? On a tactical level, there are three main points: Firstly, Mexico has lagged behind other CONCACAF teams like the USA and Costa Rica in rejuvenating its national team squad; Secondly, the hiring and quick firing of coach Diego Cocca in 2023 demonstrated poor management; and thirdly, a series of recent scandals within the FMF have negatively affected the team’s preparation and morale.
However, these are merely symptoms of deeper strategic issues. The root cause of Mexico’s underperformance in major tournaments in recent years lies in the league structure. Since 2020, the FMF abolished relegation from the league and introduced controversial policies, such as restrictions on foreign players, which have hindered the quality of the Mexican league and limited opportunities for Mexican players to join higher-level competitions. This is the key factor behind the decline of the national team’s performance.
Concluding, the media poses a question: With only two years until the United States, Canada, and Mexico-hosted World Cup, can the team truly reform, regain dignity, and rekindle its fighting spirit when they reconvene for training in September?