England suffered their first World Cup defeat against Mexico at the Estadio Azteca, winning 3-2 and securing a place in the quarter-finals in 2026.
Published July 6, 2026
Jude Bellingham’s double handed England a rare defeat to Mexico at the Estadio Azteca as 10-a-side England won 3-2 in a tense World Cup tradition and reached the quarter-finals.
Harry Kane also scored from the penalty spot on Sunday as the Three Lions overcame a red card for Jarrell Quansah, high ground and enthusiastic local support to continue their quest for a first major title in 60 years.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
England continued to rely on Bellingham and Kane throughout the tournament, and the pair carried them into a last-eight showdown with Erling Haaland’s Norway.
Bellingham scored two goals in 98 seconds in the first half, giving Mexico just their third loss in 90 games for the Aztecs.
Julian Quiñones and Raul Jimenez reduced Mexico’s arrears, but they fell short of a place in the quarterfinals.
The win also helped erase some of England’s nightmarish memories of the 1986 World Cup quarter-final at Azteca, where Diego Maradona scored Argentina’s double, including the infamous “Hand of God” goal.
Sunday’s match was delayed by an hour after thunderstorms and heavy rain hit the Mexican capital hours before the scheduled 6pm (00:00 GMT) kick-off time.
Despite the humid conditions, more than 80,000 fans packed into the stadium, making a deafening noise.
England manager Thomas Tuchel was wary of a fast start to the Mexican team as they adjust to the altitude of 2,240 meters (7,350 feet) above sea level.
Mexico escaped the trap on Tuesday with a 2-0 win in the World Cup finals against Ecuador for the first time in 40 years.
This time England managed to keep Javier Aguirre’s side at bay, but it took Jordan Pickford’s crucial intervention to stop Jimenez’s diving header into the bottom corner of the goal.
Tuchel made three changes to the squad, needing Kane’s heroic performance to prevent an embarrassing early exit for the Democratic Republic of Congo.
With Reece James unfit to start for the third consecutive game, Quansah was forced to deputize at right-back, and Tuchel faced criticism for his decision not to opt for more specialist cover in the position.
Anthony Gordon and Bukayo Saka also started wide, with both players making notable contributions.
Bellingham headed home from Saka’s cross, giving Mexico their first goal in five World Cup games.
The hosts lacked composure, but within two minutes the Real Madrid midfielder doubled England’s lead.
Kane’s cross ball was perfectly placed and Bellingham scored their fourth goal of the tournament.
But what was supposed to be a comfortable lead had all but disappeared by halftime.
Quinones scored his fourth goal of the tournament, sparking a Mexican rally after England failed to clear a free-kick.
Jimenez headed wide, but Pickford saved his header before Bellingham intervened at the last minute to prevent Cesar Montes from equalizing.
Nico O’Reilly’s deflected shot hit the post and almost restored England’s two-goal cushion.
Quansar was shown a straight red card in the 54th minute after a VAR review for mistiming a lunge on Jesus Gallardo.
But just six minutes later, Gordon was brought down by Mexican goalkeeper Raul Rangel and Kane powerfully converted the penalty to extend the 10-man lead.
It was the England captain’s sixth goal of the tournament, leaving him just one point behind Haaland, Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe in the race for the Golden Boot.
This time Kane was penalized for a foul in his own box, and Jimenez converted the penalty and slotted it home, setting up a frenetic final 20 minutes.
However, England stood up and defended desperately at times during the 11 minutes of stoppage time to resist the Mexican wave, and advanced to the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals for the third consecutive year.
