Will Mexico ban players from World Cup? Javier Aguirre threatens to drop Chivas, Toluca stars who miss May camp
Will Mexico ban players from World Cup? Javier Aguirre threatens to drop Chivas, Toluca stars who miss May camp originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
There is a power struggle happening at the Mexican Football Federation (FMF), as head coach Javier Aguirre has made a strong and controversial move just a month prior to the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on home soil. As El Tri hopes to make a strong push at its third-ever home World Cup, Aguirre has looked to give his team maximum preparation time before the start of the competition on June 11. To that end, Aguirre has called a special domestic-based national team camp beginning May 6.
The FMF announced in late April that all players who were called in but refused to attend would be excluded from consideration for the World Cup this summer. Already a strong statement of intent by Mexico, the federation has now made exceptions to that rule, which has angered certain clubs and caused a rift within parts of Mexican football. The Sporting News explains what is going on and which players are potentially going to be excluded from consideration for the World Cup this summer -- a harsh punishment for those wishing to remain available for important club matches.
2026 WORLD CUP HQ: Latest World Cup news | Full World Cup schedule | Buy World Cup tickets Mexico to hold World Cup preparation camp On April 28, Mexico head coach Javier Aguirre announced that the senior national team would hold a World Cup preparation camp at the federation's training ground in Mexico City. El Tri have three friendlies scheduled for their World Cup preparations. They are scheduled to face Ghana on May 22, Australia on May 30, and Serbia on June 4, with their first competitive match to be played on June 11 against South Africa, which is the first game of the 2026 World Cup.
Thus, Aguirre has hoped to begin his preparations early. However, this directly conflicts with multiple club football competitions. The CONCACAF Champions Cup is ongoing, as the North American continental competition has the second leg of its semifinals on May 5 and 6, and the final on May 30.
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