USA vs. Mexico, 3/26/2013

[scottie]

Can someone tell me exactly what's on the line tonight? My understanding is a win for either team helps in their bid for a spot in the 2014 World Cup but that a loss doesn't mean elimination.

Help me out, I'm trying to learn this stuff. And before anyone does the "let me Google that for you" thing, I did Google it but the results are difficult to decipher for a newb like me. TIA!

[Switzerland]

The World Cup is played every four years, and World Cup qualifying begins only a year after the last cup. There are several rounds, and the North America & Caribbean region (CONCACAF) is presently in the final round. Only six teams remain out of forty. Of those final six, the top three will go to the 2014 World Cup, while the fourth will have a playoff against the fifth-place finisher in the South American region (CONMEBOL) for another World Cup berth.

The six teams in the final round play each of the other five teams twice: once at home and once away. Mexico is traditionally the most talented opponent, so the match in Mexico City was considered the toughest of the ten on the schedule.

Here are the standings through three matches. The scoring system is similar to hockey: three points for a win and one for a draw (tie):

http://touch.fifa.com/worldcup/preliminaries/nccamerica/standings/index.html

Had the U.S. not tied Mexico 0-0, they would have been in fifth place, thanks to a surprising loss in Honduras in February. Although the U.S. hasn't missed the World Cup since 1986, several other CONCACAF nations have become much more competitive over the past decade, namely Honduras, Costa Rica, and El Salvador. So making the top three is hardly a gimme anymore.

(As a side note, the U.S. has won in Mexico only once in the past 75 years. Earning a draw instead of a loss was actually a pretty big deal ). Hope that helps.

[scottie]

Hope that helps.

Very much so, thanks.