The Concacaf Nations League is far from being the most prestigious international tournament in world soccer, but for this generation of the Mexico national team, the inability to win it perfectly encapsulated the sporting crisis El Tri have been immersed in since the tournament's inception in 2019-20.
That title drought ended last week. With solid wins over Canada and Panama, Mexico conquered the Concacaf Nations League in what's El Tri's biggest achievement of the decade.
The 2020s for El Tri have been defined by embarrassments and turmoil. Since Mexico's first FIFA World Cup group stage exit in 44 years at the 2022 Qatar World Cup cost Gerardo "Tata" Martino his job, the crisis only worsened. Diego Cocca arrived as manager on the back of two consecutive Liga MX titles with Atlas. Turmoil within the federation and a pitiful defeat against the USMNT in the 2023 Concacaf Nations League semifinals saw Cocca's tenure end after just seven games in charge.
Jaime Lozano, the man who led Mexico's U-23 side to a bronze medal in the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, replaced Cocca in hopes he could usher in a much needed generational change. Lozano's inexperience became evident quickly and another uncompetitive defeat vs. the USMNT in the 2024 Nations League final plus a group stage exit in the 2024 Copa América resulted in El Tri firing a third manager in 20 months.
With less than two years before the 2026 FIFA World Cup Mexico will co-host, the national team was in complete shambles. No longer the region's dominant force, incapable of advancing past the group stage at major tournaments and looking devoid of individual quality. Rock bottom appeared within reach.
The solution? Mexico activating their "break in case of emergency" plan for a third time this century: Javier Aguirre.
Aguirre is known as El Tri's firefighter. His two previous stints in charge came when manager's Enrique Meza and Sven-Göran Eriksson were dismissed in the midst of struggles during the 2002 and 2010 World Cup qualifiers. Twice, El Vasco managed to do two things: extinguish the fire and lead Mexico to their historical ceiling —the FIFA World Cup round of 16. Last week, Mexico's firefighter took the first major step towards achieving part one by winning a tournament where many didn't consider Mexico as the favorites going in.
What's next for Aguirre and El Tri?
