Mexico squad World Cup 2026: Javier Aguirre's final selection for the tournament (original) (raw)

Mexico World Cup 2026 squad: Mexico lift the 2025 Gold Cup

Mexico lift the 2025 Gold Cup (Image credit: Getty Images)

The Mexico World Cup 2026 squad has been named, with the tournament now just two weeks away.

World Cup 2026 will see the Mexicans become the first nation to ever host a World Cup three times, and, though El Tri won't be among the favourites for the competition, they'll have one of the more recognisable squads of the tournament.

40-year-old, 152-cap legend Guillermo Ochoa will be heading to his sixth competition — the World Cup without him would be like Christmas without Mariah Carey, wouldn't it? — topping a 26-man squad filled with both experience and younger talent.

Jesus Gallardo, Edson Alvarez and Raul Jimenez form an incredibly experienced spine ahead of the veteran shot-stopper, joined by the likes of Santiago Gimenez, Cesar Montes, Alexis Vega and Orbelin Pineda.

The 26-man squad also features exciting talent, with two subjects of FourFourTwo's The Boy's A Bit Special series, midfielders Gilberto Mora and Obed Vargas, both making the cut.

Gimenez, whose omission from the World Cup 2022 squad generated controversy, recently battled an ankle injury to regain fitness ahead of this summer's tournament, but high-profile forwards Hirving Lozano, remembered for his 2018 heroics, and 33-year-old Henry Martin have both missed out.

Mexico take on South Africa in the tournament's opening fixture on June 11 — a repeat of the game that began the 2010 World Cup.

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Squad

Mexico World Cup 2026 squad: The final squad

Fixtures and results

Fixtures

Recent results

Group A standings

Mexico are in Group A at World Cup 2026.

Manager

Who is Mexico's manager?

Now in his third stint in charge of the Mexican national team, Javier Aguirre is as experienced as they come. He took Mexico to the final of Copa America as far back as 2001 and was the manager that won the group at World Cup 2002, losing to the United States in the round of 16, naturally.

In 2010, it was the Round of 16 again as Aguirre led Mexico for a second time. He won the Gold Cup in 2009, a feat he repeated last year in his third spell.

The 67-year-old has extensive managerial experience that includes international roles with Japan and Egypt, as well as the top job at Atletico Madrid and Mexican giants Monterrey and Pachuca.

Star player

Who is Mexico's star player?

Raul Jimenez celebrates with his teammates after scoring a penalty during an international friendly match between Mexico and Paraguay.

Raul Jimenez has still got it. (Image credit: Getty Images)

If putting the ball in the back of the net is the most difficult thing to do in football, there are few better than Raul Jimenez at doing it.

There are younger pretenders, but he's still going strong at 34 and nobody in Mexico's World Cup squad can lay claim to anything like his 44 international goals.

The Fulham striker ended the 2025-26 Premier League season with nine goals and three assists in 36 appearances, proving he's still able to excel at the highest level.

Best XI

Ewan is a freelance writer and social media manager who has worked for The Athletic, GOAL, 90min and OneFootball. From Gelsenkirchen to Riyadh, he has covered some of the biggest games in football in his three years in the industry.