Marlene Santos Alejo: Summary of the day

▲ Desperate, FIFA president Infantino wants UEFA Nations League champion CR7 to be a reinforcement and box-office magnet for any World Cup team. Photo AP

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The thing looks worse a quarter A century later. Heading into the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, Javier Aguirre could count on Gerardo Torrado, Francisco Palencia, Rafael Márquez, Jesús Cabrito Arellano, Óscar Pérez, Ramón Morales, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Jared Borgetti... but, above all, he had at his side a conductor who knew football, with power and vision: Alejandro Burillo Azcárraga, who, along with the Basque, burst in to save the day. Enrique Meza had to be replaced, as the World Cup ticket was in jeopardy after the Aztec defeat against Costa Rica on June 16, 2001.

Burillo had had the gesture of sending Vasco Aguirre from his own pocket to train at Real Madrid (1996-97), and despite the good chemistry, there was no lack of friction between them due to sponsorship issues with cola-flavored soft drinks... They got through to the tournament, and Emilio Azcárraga Jean and Burillo himself, then owner of the Tri marketing contract, regained their spirit. He dressed the team with his ABA brand (letters of his initials); he also boasted about his influence on FIFA by getting Arellano's punishment reduced.

Indeed, Burillo profited for his own benefit, but he also provided a significant boost. During his tenure, the club won the 1999 Confederations Cup with Manuel Lapuente at the helm, as well as participation in CONMEBOL tournaments. As Gerardo Tata Martino once said, the region's football is a step above CONCACAF in terms of quality. Thanks to this, the tricolor coach was able to strengthen his squad with the Copa Libertadores runner-up, Cruz Azul, and prepared for the World Cup during the 2001 Copa América Colombia.

However, nothing significant happened on the pitch in Asian territory. Yesterday, as today, the goal was simply to participate, to rattle, to make a fuss. What's more, that World Cup ended badly. El Tri returned with long faces and without Aguirre, feuding with Cuau and Palencia, and, in a reprehensible gesture, didn't return to Mexico, going straight to Osasuna... At the airport in Mexico City, the only one who received cheers was Conejo Pérez... In addition, a tremendous fight broke out between the Azcárraga cousins, with the threat of lawsuits regarding contracts involving the tricolor.

Today, Mexican soccer is worse. Chaotic. Team owners are bickering and completely unable to unify their views; there's no leader among the long-pants players; when Juan Carlos Bomba Rodríguez left, they put in a pair of makeshift players, lacking in history or authority; more than half of the clubs ignore the youth teams and are saturated with foreign players with little to offer El Tri ; major tournaments are lacking, but above all, without relegation, the Liga MX has declined to the ground and is on the verge of extinguishing the Liga de Expansión... One bright spot is Doriva Bueno's U-20 women's team.

For Televisa, the deal leading up to the 2026 World Cup is a done deal, but in the sporting arena, the only thing clinching the deal is the experience of the coach. Today, more alone than ever… Beyond winking at journalists with jokes and gags, the crucial issue is the field. After the loss to Switzerland and superficial self-criticism, Aguirre escaped with the manliness of the matter. He wants his players to lift their heads and show their pride by taking insults and defeats. He gave them a scathing beating, said their legs were shaking , called them a team without personality … Is that the strategy?

Another test against Turkey follows, and it's time for Mexico to kick off the Gold Cup on Saturday against the Dominican Republic in the turbulent city of Los Angeles. The United States is experiencing a sharp decline in tourism, raids against suspected illegal immigrants, and President Donald Trump's hostile tone toward the world are being reflected in sports. The Mexico-Switzerland friendly in Salt Lake City registered only about 30,000 attendees. On Tuesday, they will play against the Turks in North Carolina.

The World Cup also kicks off on Saturday and will be a loss-making event: exorbitant prize money and poor box office. Ticket prices have dropped from $350 to $55. There's no demand; people are only interested in watching Real Madrid and Boca Juniors. This is a big disappointment for FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who believed he would be raking in truckloads of dollars in the United States. After América's failure, he is looking to sign Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo to any participating team.