The summer international schedule for the Mexican national team started with the CONCACAF Nations League under new coach Diego Cocca.
The results didn’t go their way as the Mexico lost to the U.S. in the semifinals, eventually finished third and Cocca was fired less than a week before the start of the CONCACAF Gold Cup and less than five months after he had been hired.
In his place stepped Jaime Lozano as interim coach. Lozano’s most recent assignment was leading the Mexican Olympic team to the bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
The move has appeared to work as Lozano, Mexico’s third coach in less than a year, has led “El Tri” to the Gold Cup final against Panama on Sunday in front of a sold-out crowd at SoFi Stadium (4:30 p.m., Ch. 11, TUDN). Mexico has won the tournament eight times, the most among all nations. CONCACAF announced that the game is a sellout, with a crowd of 70,000-plus expected.
“Usually, the dream final is the United States against Mexico, but that is not going to happen and it doesn’t matter to me,” Lozano said after Wednesday’s semifinal win against Jamaica. “For me, the goal is the same. If Panama is in the final, it is because they did something better than the United States.”
Mexico allowed two goals in group play and has recorded consecutive shutouts – 2-0 over Costa Rica in the quarterfinals and 3-0 over Jamaica in the semifinals – to advance to the final, which CONCACAF announced Saturday would have more than 70,000 in attendance.
Panama survived its semifinal match against the U.S., winning in penalty kicks (5-4) for its first final appearance since 2013 and just its third all time.
Panama finished fifth in World Cup qualifying, missing out on the tournament. Despite that, coach Thomas Christiansen was retained and, just like with Lozano, it appears to be another move that has paid off.
“The football that Panama has been playing has been very good. We have created scoring chances, we have controlled the matches and also we have improved defensively,” Christiansen said after Wednesday’s semifinal win. “If we take all those features to the final, why not dream a little?”
Mexico defeated Panama 1-0 in the third-place game at the Nations League in June. That would end up being Cocca’s last game in charge.
As the attention begins turning toward the 2026 World Cup, the question facing the Mexican Federation is whether Lozano has done enough to remain as coach. Mexico, like Canada and the U.S., will not have to qualify for the World Cup.
“I arrived (to coach) for a Gold Cup,” Lozano said. “That’s what’s in my mind.”
Panama won Group C with two wins and one draw and followed that with a 4-0 win over Qatar in the quarterfinals before the penalty-kick shootout win over the U.S.
CONCACAF Gold Cup Final
Who: Mexico vs. Panama
When: 4:30 p.m. Sunday
Where: SoFi Stadium
How to watch: Ch. 11, TUDN