World Cup: Mexico and the curse of the round of 16

World Cup 2026 Today at 17:55

Nouya M'toama

News Editor

For more than three decades, Mexico has lived with a frustration that has become almost legendary. Regularly present in the World Cup finals, El Tri has been unable to break past the round of 16 hurdle. This dark streak has given rise to a now-famous term in the country: la maldición del quinto partido, the curse of the fifth match.

The last time Mexico reached the quarter-finals of a World Cup was back in 1986. Since then, the Mexican national team has suffered seven consecutive eliminations at the round of 16 stage. Bulgaria in 1994, Germany in 1998, the United States in 2002, Argentina in 2006 and 2010, the Netherlands in 2014, and then Brazil in 2018: the executioners have changed, but the result has stayed the same.

This inability to play the tournament's "fifth match" has become a true national obsession. Yet, Mexico remains one of the most consistent teams on the planet, almost always managing to make it out of the group stage.

Hope is reborn at home

The only two quarter-finals Mexico has played in its history were both on home soil, during the 1970 and 1986 editions. It's a detail that fuels all hopes today. In 2026, the country will once again host the World Cup alongside the United States and Canada, becoming the first nation to organize the tournament three times.

After the disappointment in Qatar in 2022, where El Tri was eliminated in the group stage, the federation handed the reins of the team to Javier Aguirre. Now in his third spell, the manager has just one goal: to end a wait that has lasted 32 years.

Driven by their home crowd and led by a new generation spearheaded by Santiago Giménez, Mexico is dreaming of finally breaking the curse. More than just a sporting goal, it's a historic mission for an entire nation.