MEXICO CITY (AP) 鈥� best performances at the came during the two occasions it hosted the tournament. Now that the country will be hosting for the third time 鈥� with the United States and Canada 鈥� fans want history to repeat itself. And maybe more.
To ensure optimal preparation, the Mexican Football Federation (FMF) invested 400 million pesos (around $22 million) in renovating their training center known as Centro de Alto Rendimiento (CAR), or High Performance Center, which was officially reopened on Saturday.
As a player, current Mexico coach was part of the national team that reached the quarterfinals in 1986, matching the country鈥檚 performance in the 1970 World Cup. Aguirre, with the revamped training center, will try to match at least that as a coach.
Mexico begins training at the High Performance Center on May 6, with players from the domestic league. Its first match in the World Cup is the tournament opener on June 11 against South Africa.
鈥楤uilding a foundation鈥�
鈥淭his investment reflects our responsibility for the 2026 World Cup. We have built a facility that will provide the national team with the best possible conditions for preparation that are on a par with the world鈥檚 leading football powers,鈥� said FMF president Mikel Arriola. 鈥淗osting a World Cup demands that we raise all our standards, both on and off the field鈥�.
The site has been the training headquarters for Mexico’s national teams since 2003, during which time it gradually grew, but it had never previously had an update like this one.
鈥淭his project is also intended as a legacy. It鈥檚 not just about 2026, but about building a foundation that will impact the development of our national teams in the coming years,鈥� Arriola said.
The senior team accommodation has been expanded from 20 to 45 rooms, in addition to entertainment areas. There is also a 29-room area for youth national teams.
The biggest change was the construction of a new building to house a new gym, which grew from 1,200 to 6,000 square meters. This building is also home to the medical area, locker rooms, coaches鈥� offices, a sports intelligence area, and physiotherapy and hydrotherapy facilities.
鈥淭here used to be a small gym with a medical area, but all of that was demolished to build this new building,鈥� said Daniel Garc铆a, FMF real estate manager. 鈥淓verything here now, apart from two machines in the gym, is new.鈥�
The dining room capacity has also increased from 70 to 210 people.
鈥淭he most complicated thing was coordinating all the areas because they all asked for a lot of things wanting to have the best in the world and that doesn鈥檛 always go with the budget, but I think we achieved a great result,鈥� Garc铆a said.
The training center already had five playing fields, three regulation size and two smaller ones. One of the fields has state-of-the-art hybrid technology like the one recently installed at the , which was renovated for the World Cup.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had visits from FIFA staff who told us that this is the field in all of Mexico, and that鈥檚 why people from Azteca Stadium came to get some advice,” Garcia said. “After all, we鈥檙e colleagues and brothers.鈥�
___
AP soccer:
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
