Sport in Mexico
Meanwhile, in the southern part of Mexico City, the amateur practice of Paleta frontón and Basque pelota holds significant cultural importance and has enhanced the international reputation of Mexican sports.
[11] By the 18th-century Spanish colonialists had introduced new sports such as horse racing and bullfighting, which quickly gained popularity among the elite and became significant social events.
Cultural festivals often featured a variety of athletic competitions, blending local customs with colonial practices, and reflecting the rich, hybrid nature of Mexican society during this period.
[16] The lavish resort and racetrack on the Mexican border was popular among Americans, particularly Hollywood celebrities, because drinking, gambling and horse racing were still illegal in most of the neighboring U.S. states.
Cockfighting is not banned in Mexico, and practiced in the Mexican states of Michoacán, Aguascalientes, Jalisco, Sinaloa, and Veracruz, mostly during regional fairs and other celebrations.
Mexico's best progression was reaching the quarter-finals in the 1970 and 1986 World Cups, both of which were staged on Mexican soil, and will host once again in 2026 sharing with Canada and United States.
Although Mexico is under the jurisdiction of CONCACAF, the national football team has been regularly invited to compete in the Copa América since 1993 finishing as runner-up twice and obtaining the third place medal on three occasions.
Since 1943, Mexico's five most successful clubs in Mexican football league system matches have been América (13 championships), Chivas (12), Toluca (10), Cruz Azul (8) and Pumas (7).
He is the fourth highest scorer in the history of La Liga, the third-highest scoring foreign player after Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Mexican team Monterrey La Raza joined the Major Indoor football League in 2007 and finished the season in second place during its inaugural year.
Other states where baseball has had a strong traditional legacy include Baja California, Oaxaca, Coahuila, Veracruz, Puebla, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Quintana Roo and Mexico City.
The first Mexican to play in Major League Baseball in the United States was Mel Almada, who participated with the Boston Red Sox in 1933.
Most recently Benji Gil, Esteban Loaiza, Julio Urías, José Urquidy, and Cuban defector, now a Cuban-Mexican Randy Arozarena.
The Mexican Baseball League ("Liga Mexicana de Béisbol" or "LMB") was founded in 1925, establishing six teams, and playing all their matches in Mexico City.
In 1937, legendary Negro leagues' stars Satchel Paige and "Cool Papa Bell" left the Pittsburgh Crawfords to play in Latin America.
Pasquel signed up close to twenty major leaguers, including such well known names as Mickey Owen and Sal Maglie, and a number of Negro league players.
Ultimately, Pasquel's dream faded, as financial realities led to decreased salaries and his high-priced foreign stars returned home.
In the winter, 10 teams play in the Mexican Pacific League ("Liga Mexicana del Pacífico" or "LMP"), whose winner advances to the Caribbean Series against other Latin American champions.
[39] The Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional was founded in 2016[40] with 4 initial teams (Raptors, Eagles, Condors and Mayas), all based in Mexico City.
Funded in 2018, the Fútbol Americano de México (FAM) is considerad as a rival to the LFA given they compete for television spaces, players, coaches and in general for the same market segment.
Later eventually leading to his current work as color commentator for Monday Night Football with Álvaro Martín for ESPN in Latin America.
Although American born and trained, National Hockey League (NHL) center Auston Matthews is of Mexican heritage through his mother, and grew up in Scottsdale, Arizona.
[47] Notable former NHL players of Mexican descent include former Montreal Canadiens forward Scott Gomez and retired San Jose Sharks winger Raffi Torres.
Basque pelota is the name for a variety of court sports played with a ball using one's hand, a racket, a wooden bat, or a basket propulsor, against a wall.
Other prominent Mexican boxers include World Boxing Hall of Fame members, Kid Azteca, Jesús Pimentel, Lupe Pintor, Juan Zurita, Jorge Paez and José Luis Ramírez.
Jessica Aguilar, a native of Veracruz, was the first Mexican-born champion in a major MMA promotion, winning the WSOF Strawweight title in 2014 (pre-dating the UFC in that division).
Plaza de Toros México become a tennis court and hosted, as Roger Federer faced Germany's Alexander Zverev on November 23, 2019.
María Lorena Ramírez Hernández, a Mexican long-distance and ultra-fund runner, became known worldwide after having won the 2017 UltraTrail Cerro Rojo ultra-distance race of 50 kilometers, in a time of 07:20:00, and for having done it wearing huaraches and a long skirt, without sports footwear or equipment.
The original "Big Three" of the lucha libre tradition in Mexico, other legendary wrestlers are Perro Aguayo, Rayo de Jalisco, and Huracán Ramírez.
Recently, Mexican wrestlers had more participation in foreign wrestling companies like WWE, AEW, TNA, ROH, NWA and NJPW; these wrestlers are Blue Demon Jr, Alberto Del Rio, Rush, Bandido, Penta 0M, Rey Fenix, Thunder Rosa, Andrade El Idolo, Dralístico, Dragon Lee, Laredo Kid, Flamita, Metalik, Komander, Humberto Carrillo, Angel Garza, Santos Escobar, etc.
