Mexico World Cup 2026 squad: Javier Aguirre's latest selection for March international friendlies

Mexico World Cup 2026 squad: Mexico lift the 2025 Gold Cup — Mexico lift the 2025 Gold Cup (Image credit: Getty Images)

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The Mexico World Cup 2026 squad will be in the spotlight this summer.

Mexico will become the first nation to host three different editions when the first World Cup 2026 match is played there in June, but El Tri themselves won't be among the favourites for this 48-team monolith.

Sporting quite excellent home and away kits for the World Cup, Mexico can boast almost unrivalled experience that Aguirre must try to combine with some promising young players representing the next generation.

Aguirre's squad for March friendlies against Portugal and Belgium included 40-year-old goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa and 34-year-old striker Raul Jimenez, both of whom passed 100 caps several years ago.

At the other end of the age scale, Obed Vargas of Atletico Madrid now has five senior international caps and has been watched closely for FourFourTwo's The Boy's A Bit Special series.

Mexico have qualified for every World Cup since 1994 after serving a tournament ban in 1990. This time around, they didn't have to go through the motions and qualified as co-hosts.

El Tri kept their competitive football muscle memory sharp by winning back-to-back CONCACAF Gold Cup titles in 2023 and 2025, ramping up the difficulty rating of their international friendlies as the greatest show on earth nears a return to Mexican soil for a record third time.

Squad

Mexico World Cup 2026 squad: The March selection

GK: Raúl Rangel (Guadalajara)
GK: Carlos Acevedo (Santos Laguna)
GK: Guillermo Ochoa (AEL Limassol)
DF: Jorge Sánchez (PAOK)
DF: César Montes (Lokomotiv Moscow)
DF: Johan Vásquez (Genoa)
DF: Israel Reyes (América)
DF: Everardo López (Toluca)
DF: Richard Ledezma (Guadalajara)
DF: Jesús Gallardo (Toluca)
DF: Jesús Alberto Angulo (UANL)
MF: Érik Lira (Cruz Azul)
MF: Carlos Rodríguez (Cruz Azul)
MF: Érick Sánchez (América)
MF: Orbelín Pineda (AEK Athens)
MF: Obed Vargas (Atlético Madrid)
MF: Álvaro Fidalgo (Betis)
MF: Denzell García (Juárez)
MF: Brian Gutiérrez (Guadalajara)
FW: Germán Berterame (Inter Miami)
FW: Raúl Jiménez (Fulham)
FW: Alexis Vega (Toluca)
FW: Guillermo Martínez (UNAM)
FW: Julián Quiñones (Al-Qadsiah)
FW: Roberto Alvarado (Guadalajara)
FW: Armando González (Guadalajara)

Fixtures

May 22, 2026: Mexico vs Ghana, Estadio Cuauhtémoc, Puebla, Mexico
May 30, 2026: Mexico vs Australia, Rose Bowl, Pasadena, United States
June 4, 2026: Mexico vs Serbia, Venue TBC, Mexico
June 11, 2026: Mexico vs South Africa, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico
June 18, 2026: Mexico vs South Korea, Estadio Akron, Zapopan, Mexico
June 24, 2026: Czechia vs Mexico, Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico

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?

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 18: Raul Jimenez #9 of Mexico celebrates with his teammates after scoring a penalti during an international friendly match between Mexico and Paraguay at Alamodome on November 18, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Omar Vega/Getty Images) — Raul Jimenez of Mexico (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 was selected in the squad for the March friendlies against Portugal and Belgium on the back of nine goals in 25 Premier League starts in 2025-26. With a strong end to the season for the Cottagers, the experienced frontman will be difficult to unseat.

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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.

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