sports Archives - Page 2 of 37 - understand-culture

From Chivas to América

In January 2024, “Chicote” Calderón moved from Chivas, the club of Guadalajara, to its great rival, América. On March 16, 2024, he returned to the Estadio Akron for the Clásico Nacional. ESPN noted that “hace solo tres meses defendía los colores del Rebaño Sagrado” (only three months ago he defended the colors of the Sacred Flock), as Chivas is known.

The fans “abuchearon al jugador en cada balón que tocó” (booed the player every time he touched the ball). When he was substituted, they threw cups and other objects at him. The match ended 0-0.

Sing and Do Not Cry

Quirino Mendoza y Cortés composed Cielito lindo in 1882. Its chorus says: “Ay, ay, ay, ay, canta y no llores” (sing and do not cry). Excélsior notes that its first verse is very similar to an old Andalusian song.

Mexican fans sing it at sporting events. Vanguardia called it the most representative song of Mexico at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. According to Por Esto!, the phrase represents for many people “una forma de enfrentar las dificultades con optimismo” (a way to face difficulties with optimism).

The Cuauhtemiña

On June 13, 1998, in Lyon, Mexico beat South Korea 3-1 at the World Cup. Cornered by two Korean defenders, Cuauhtémoc Blanco trapped the ball between his feet and jumped forward over them with the ball. The move became known as the cuauhtemiña.

The sports newspaper Récord describes it as a technical resource “nacido en el barrio” (born in the neighborhood).

Gentlemen’s Agreement

On September 23, 2021, Mexico’s competition authority, COFECE, fined 17 clubs of the Liga MX, the Mexican Football Federation and eight individuals a total of 177.6 million pesos. COFECE found that the clubs had colluded to restrict the market for signing players.

The practice was a derecho de retención, a retention right, known as the pacto de caballeros, the gentlemen’s agreement. COFECE also found that the clubs had capped the salaries of players in the women’s league from November 2016 to May 2019.

The Curse of the Fifth Match

Mexican football fans speak of la maldición del quinto partido, “the curse of the fifth match.” Mexico was eliminated in the round of 16 at seven World Cups in a row, from 1994 to 2018. The fifth match, the quarterfinal, never came. In 2022, Mexico did not get past the group stage.

In 2026, the expanded tournament added a round of 32. Mexico beat Ecuador 2-0 at the Estadio Azteca and so played a fifth match. The press debated whether the curse had really been broken, since Mexico had still not passed the round of 16. In that fifth match, the round of 16, Mexico lost 3-2 to England.

We Played as Never Before

Jugamos como nunca y perdimos como siempre. “We played as never before, and we lost as always.” The line is a popular saying in Mexican football. In July 2026, a columnist in the Diario de Yucatán quoted it again “como reza el dicho” (as the saying goes).

The One Most Responsible

On November 30, 2022, Mexico was eliminated in the group stage of the World Cup in Qatar. At his press conference, coach Gerardo “Tata” Martino said: “Yo soy el responsable máximo de esta terrible decepción y frustración que tenemos” (I am the one most responsible for this terrible disappointment and frustration). He said he took “full responsibility for this great failure.”

He also said that his contract had expired when the referee blew the final whistle.

Crawling to the Sash

At the Princess Ekiden, a women’s relay race, in October 2018, Iida Rei, a 19-year-old runner for Iwatani Sangyō, broke her right shin. She crawled on all fours to hand the tasuki, the team’s sash, to the next runner. Reports give the distance she crawled as 200 meters, 250 meters or about 300 meters.

On television afterward, the sociologist Furuichi Noritoshi proposed that a runner who cannot go on should be allowed to pass the sash from where she stops. The host, Ogura Tomoaki, replied: Sore jā ekiden no imi ga nai wake deshō. Then there would be no point in an ekiden.

Two Sponsors

An applicant to the Kasumigaseki Country Club is recommended by two members. According to a report in Gendai Business, these two sponsors carry a heavy responsibility. The club takes its time to judge the applicant’s character.

Without passing the screening, the report says, no one can join, even with 100 million yen. After admission is decided, the new member plays a round of golf with a director of the club.