{"id":1465789,"date":"2026-07-03T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-03T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?post_type=features&p=1465789"},"modified":"2026-07-03T01:40:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-03T00:40:17","slug":"mexico-azteca-record-england-world-cup","status":"publish","type":"features","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/features\/mexico-azteca-record-england-world-cup\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Mexico will be the ultimate test of England’s World Cup credentials"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

After scraping past DR Congo<\/a>, England<\/a> now travel to face co-hosts Mexico in the 2026 World Cup<\/a> round of 16.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Three Lions needed a clutch Harry Kane brace to seal a 2-1 comeback win over the Leopards in Atlanta. It was another performance that raised more questions than answers, but the most important thing is that England are through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, though, in the most difficult draw you could hope for at this stage of the tournament, they must travel to Mexico City and enter the famous Azteca cauldron to face El Tri.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This will be the ultimate test of England’s World Cup credentials, and here, we outline why.<\/p>\n\n\n

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    El Tri’s formidable Azteca record<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    The Azteca needs no introduction to any football fan. It is arguably the <\/em>World Cup stadium, and is the only one to host matches at three different editions of the tournament. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    However, for England, it is the site of one of their greatest sources of hurt: Diego Maradona’s ‘Hand of God’ goal when Argentina beat them in the quarter-finals 40 years ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    England return to the iconic old ground on Sunday, but if they’re to leave with their World Cup hearts still beating, they’re going to have to overcome more than just their own painful history in this stadium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That’s because they’re about to face a Mexico<\/a> team that have lost just two of their 89 previous matches at the Azteca. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You have to go all the way back to September 2013 for their last defeat here, when the United States won 2-0 thanks to goals from Eddie Johnson and Landon Donovan. Their only other Azteca loss was against Costa Rica during the 2002 World Cup qualifying cycle, leaving El Tri with an overall record in the stadium of 70 wins, 17 draws and just those two aforementioned defeats. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    There is a caveat here, with Portugal the only top-10 nation they’ve faced at the Azteca since that loss to the United States. Aside from a couple of further meetings with the US and a growing Canadian force, they’ve only taken on the likes of Panama, El Salvador, Guatemala, Israel, Scotland, New Zealand and Jamaica. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Nevertheless, this is still a formidable record that has stood the test of time, taking in a host of matches in the highly-charged environment of Concacaf — a federation known for its wild unpredictability and jarring weather conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What’s more, things get even more impressive at World Cups, with Mexico unbeaten in 10 previous Azteca matches — winning seven, drawing three and keeping eight clean sheets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Altitude<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    That brings us nicely to what is arguably the biggest leveller in this match: the altitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The Azteca sits a whopping 2,200m above sea level, and while that’s nowhere near the elevation boasted by stadiums in South American countries like Peru, Bolivia and Colombia, it is the highest venue at this World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    By comparison, Wembley Stadium is less than 100m above sea level, while Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta — where England beat DR Congo — sits at approximately 320m elevation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    On paper, England, with the likes of Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka, are far superior to Mexico. But El Tri have played three of their four 2026 World Cup matches at the Azteca, giving them plenty of time to adjust to the conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Playing at this height can sap your energy and leave you gasping if you don’t manage the game correctly. Thomas Tuchel himself has mentioned the conditions and England’s lack of time to adjust to them as a potential factor, and taking a squad carrying a host of injuries to the Azteca is less than ideal. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The 12th man<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    As if facing a co-host in a stadium where they’re unbeaten, located thousands of metres above sea level wasn’t hard enough, the crowd that fills the Azteca is among the most intense and hostile in world football.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The El Tri fans generate an incredible atmosphere in this 87,000-capacity footballing bear pit, with a noise more akin to a war zone than a stadium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    That energy has fuelled Mexico to come out swinging at this World Cup, with Javier Aguirre’s men scoring after just nine minutes in the opener against South Africa, and taking a 2-0 lead inside 31 minutes in the round of 32 against Ecuador. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The latter, especially, looked like rabbits in the headlights as Mexico left many people’s dark horse pick punch drunk with their intensity. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    If England score early and control the game from there, the Mexican crowd is more likely to turn on their own players than back them. However, recent trends suggest that is a very big if. And should it go the other way early, it could get very ugly for the Three Lions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Mexico’s flawless form<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    We’ve mentioned Mexico’s form a few times, but we need to put a finer point on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    El Tri have won all four of their matches at the 2026 World Cup so far, scoring eight goals and conceding none. The co-hosts join Spain as the only other side yet to be breached so far, while their xG conceded of 2.26 is bettered only by holders Argentina (1.61) and European champions La Roja (0.86).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Julian Quinones has been one of the players of the tournament so far with his three goals, Cesar Montes and Johan Vasquez have been air-tight at centre-back, and Mexico’s midfield is sprinkled with a host of exciting youngsters, including Gilberto Mora and Brian Gutierrez.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    You could argue that Mexico are yet to be truly tested. But on the other hand, Ecuador and South Korea were both viewed as pre-tournament dark horses, and South Africa proved a lot of doubters wrong by going on to make the knockout rounds. Even the Czech Republic, who were disappointing, have made a major tournament quarter-final as recently as Euro 2020 and were six games unbeaten heading into the World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Mexico have history, height and home advantage on their side this Sunday. If England can overcome this challenge, nobody can doubt their ability to go all the way any longer. Declaring intentions and executing them on the pitch, however, are two very different propositions.<\/p>\n\n\n

    Read more:<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n