MEXICO CITY — As you drive down the Avenida del Iman, Estadio Azteca looms on the horizon. From afar, it looks like a hulking birthday cake was plopped down in the Santa Ursala neighborhood of Mexico City. As you get closer, the concrete supports look like the collective arms of Mexico supporters, pushing up on the venue’s rim and out of the ground. Once inside, the stands — despite their immense size — give off a claustrophobic feel, and that’s without any fans present.
On Thursday, the Azteca — which has hosted two World Cup finals, in 1970 and 1986 — will welcome the latest incarnation of the Clasico between Mexico and the United States men’s national teams in a 2022 World Cup qualifier. In many ways, it feels like the end of an era.
Up to now, the World Cup qualifiers between the two neighbors have been the first fans have looked for when the fixtures are released. But change is coming. With both countries hosting the 2026 World Cup, along with Canada, there will be no qualifiers to look forward to for that tournament. By the time the 2030 qualifiers beckon, the World Cup will have expanded to 48 teams, which could result in the number of automatic qualifying spots from CONCACAF being doubled to six.
Granted, games between the two CONCACAF heavyweights will always mean something. The desire for bragging rights will remain. But the stakes — at least in terms of World Cup qualification — will be lessened, the damage done by a defeat less severe, and thus some of the tension will dissipate.
– World Cup qualifying: CONCACAF standings
– 2022 World Cup: How the USMNT, Mexico can qualify
– Stream on ESPN+: FC Daily | Fútbol Americas
– Don’t have ESPN? Get instant access
While such thoughts focus on the future, it is the present that concerns the U.S., and the stakes surrounding Thursday’s encounter are high indeed. The two teams are level with each other in the standings, with the U.S. just edging ahead on goal differential.
The neuroses of both teams are…
Source : espn
