Mexico's scheduled friendly against Senegal at Chicago's Soldier Field on May 10 has sold out, organizers announced today. With more than 60,000 tickets sold for the match, it is the second sellout on El Tri's six-game pre-World Cup tour.
Tonight's friendly against Ecuador at the new Giants Stadium in Meadowlands, N.J., is also sold out, with more than 80,000 fans due to attend. El Tri recently tied Iceland 0-0 in Charlotte, N.C., in front of 63,227 spectators, and 90,526 watched Mexico defeat New Zealand 2-0 in Pasadena, Calif., at the Rose Bowl on March 3.
Mexico complete their tour in Houston, where they'll take on Angola at Reliant Stadium on May 13.
The continued box office success of the Mexico national team in the United States has many calling El Tri "America's favorite team." To compare, the U.S. national team recently played El Salvador in front of 21,737 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla., and 18,626 fans watched them lose to Honduras in Carson, Calif.
"Our mission is to grow a soccer nation," MLS commissioner Don Garber—who is also chief executive of Mexico's tour organizer, Soccer United Marketing—told TheWall Street Journal. "Our goal isn't to convince them what country to root for but to convince them to give us a chance and convert them into MLS fans."
