Mexico, for its 13th title

This afternoon, Mexico will seek to defend its Gold Cup title in another final against its arch-rival, the United States, a duel spiced up by the fact that it is the final official test for two teams that will co-host the World Cup in less than a year.

This will be the eighth time they have faced each other in the decisive match for the CONCACAF championship.

El Tri arrives at Houston's NRG Stadium after a demanding run, working hard to beat Honduras 1-0 in the semifinals. The Mexicans previously defeated Saudi Arabia 2-0 in the quarterfinals, after leading Group A with seven points.

The road to the final for the Americans was more complicated: they beat Guatemala 2-1 for a place in the title match and defeated Costa Rica, led by Miguel “Piojo” Herrera, on penalties (4-3), after a 2-2 draw in regular time.

They completed the first round without any problems in Group D, with nine points available.

The Mexican national team comes into this final with a history of winning five and losing two in the title matches against the United States. The only other Gold Cup match was in the inaugural edition in 1991, with the United States winning in the semifinals.

Javier Aguirre, coach of the Mexican national team, will face the United States again in a final. The 2009 clash was accompanied by the most resounding 5-0 victory in the history of matches for the title.

El Tri is the tournament's dominant force, having won 12 titles since its founding in 1963 as the CONCACAF Nations Championship. Known as the Gold Cup, the Mexican team has won nine titles (1993, 1996, 1998, 2003, 2009, 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2023).

For its part, the United States has been the only team that has put up resistance to the Mexican team, winning seven titles (1991, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2017 and 2021) under the new format.— AP

Page 5