Dark Horses and Tactical Strength
What about Ecuador? As Aaron Timms writes, they are considered dark horses based on their defensive strength and an eye-catching coach.
"On the field, through victory and defeat, Ecuador have been exactly what everyone imagined they would be before the tournament began: a team with an elite defensive and midfield spine that lacks any real punch up front. But on the sidelines and in the press conferences, they have absolutely dominated, and that’s all down to the gaucho Fabio they have leading their team."
With his streaks of dirty blond hair, chinstrap of stubble, and Boeing 747 nose, Sebastián Beccacece appears as the kind of manager who should perform well at the World Cup, regardless of results on the pitch. At 45 years old, he leads a country other than his native Argentina and arrives at this tournament with a modest coaching record, having served as an assistant under Jorge Sampaoli with Chile and managed the Spanish club side Elche without notable success.
The Curse of the Fifth Game and Mexico's History
More on the fascinating curse of the fifth game.
Mexico reached the quarterfinals on home soil in 1986, but they were banned from Italia 90 due to fielding over-age players at the 1988 CONCACAF U-20 Tournament, in what became known as the Cachirules scandal. Because four players were found to have falsified their ages, the fourth match is now considered cursed, meaning the fifth game never materializes.
Following the scandal, El Tri were eliminated in the round of 16 (their fourth match) in every tournament from 1994 to 2018 – seven consecutive World Cups – before failing to exit the group phase in Qatar.
Mexican Perspective on the Fifth Game Curse
Raúl Vilchis sets the scene from a Mexican perspective, where the curse of the fifth game looms large over the hosts.
"Mexico’s World Cup history has been marked by decades of defeats in the first-stage of the knockout rounds. Exactly the round Mexico will be playing in for their Tuesday matchup against Ecuador. And the country is on edge.
Since 1994, Mexico have made it to the knockouts – and then fallen at the first hurdle. The only exception was in Qatar when they didn’t even make it out of the groups. The last time Mexico made it to the now mythical 'fifth game' was their quarter-final appearance in 1986, which was also the last time the World Cup was held on home soil.
A familiar anxiety that this fourth game will be Mexico’s last at this tournament is building across the nation."
Team news will be released shortly and kick-off is still some time away, providing ample opportunity to join the conversation by emailing jonathan.howcroft.freelance@the.com.
You could also reflect on the two nations already through to the round of 16 today, or consider the matches from yesterday.
In the meantime, enjoy commentary from Max and Barry and the rest of the podcast team.
Match Preview: Mexico vs Ecuador
Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of Mexico versus Ecuador in the round of 32 at the 2026 World Cup. Kick-off at the Estadio Azteca is scheduled for 7pm local time (9pm EDT / 2am BST / 11am AEST).
Mexico, the vibrant hosts, have advanced without conceding a goal, demonstrating the resilience of their coach Javier Aguirre. Just two years ago, El Tri’s preparations were in disarray as they dismissed their third coach since the start of the Qatar World Cup. For the third time, they turned to the man who played in the country’s greatest ever team in 1986, and for the third time, he has led them out of the group phase. His task now is to break "el quinto partido" – the fifth game curse.
To do so, Mexico must find a way through a team that finished second in continental qualifying but lagged behind the already eliminated Germany and Ivory Coast. Ecuador are ferociously tough and rarely concede goals; unfortunately for their supporters, they also rarely score many.
In a second round already defined by close contests, this is another pairing destined to go down to the wire.
Sudden death football at the most storied venue in World Cup history. These are the moments that make the four-year wait worthwhile.
