Mexican National Team to face Croatia, Republic of Ireland on USA tour

MEXICO CITY and NEW YORK CITY (Via Federación Mexicana de Fútbol and Soccer United Marketing) – The Mexican National Team will play back-to-back games this spring in Los Angeles and the New York area against European competition to prepare for upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifiers and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup.

The Federación Mexicana de Fútbol and Soccer United Marketing have announced that Mexico will play the National Team of Croatia on Saturday, May 27 (4:30 p.m. PT), at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum – hosted by 2018 MLS expansion club Los Angeles Football Club. On Thursday, June 1 (8:00 p.m. ET), Mexico will take-on the Republic of Ireland at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, just days prior to Mexico’s Hexagonal CONCACAF Qualifiers against Honduras and the United States.

Both games are part of the landmark 15^th annual Mexican National Team U.S. Tour, which kicked off on Feb. 8 in Las Vegas in a 1-0 win against Iceland in front of a record-breaking audience for soccer in the city. Two additional tour games will be announced at a later date.

Croatia, currently 16^th in the FIFA Rankings, has faced off against Mexico on four different occasions, with each squad winning two games. Croatia emerged victorious during their first two matches in 1992 and 1999, while Mexico defeated Croatia in Japan during the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The last time these two nations met was during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil in a match that Mexico won 3-1 in Recife, ensuring their pass into the round of 16.

The Mexican National Team has faced Republic of Ireland, currently 25^th in the FIFA rankings, on five different occasions, winning one match and drawing four. The first time they met was in a 1984 friendly in Dublin, in a game that ended as a 0-0 draw. During the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico defeated Republic of Ireland 2-1 in a 1^st round match to emerge from their Group in first place, while tied on points with Republic of Ireland and Italy. The last time these two teams faced each other was nearly 17 years ago, during the 2000 U.S. Cup, in Chicago, in a match that resulted in a 2-2 draw.

The Coliseum has welcomed the Mexican team on numerous occasions since its opening in 1923. Most recently, Mexico defeated Ecuador 1-0 in front of a sellout crowd of 88,000 fans on a 14^th minute goal by striker Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez in March of 2015.

The Mexican National Team has had a winning relationship with MetLife Stadium, competing in the venue’s first-ever international sporting event, a 1-0 win over Ecuador in 2010, witnessed by a sold-out crowd. In all, Mexico has played – and won – five times at MetLife Stadium, the last of which was an overtime win against Costa Rica in a 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal game played before more than 80,000 fans.

The Tour will visit five cities across the United States in 2017, and will be broadcast nationally on the Univision family of networks and Fútbol de Primera Radio Network.

2017 Mexican National Team U.S. Tour