Major League Soccer’s commercial branch Soccer United Marketing is extending their contract with the Mexican national team.
SUM will continue serving the Mexican Football Federation in the United States for the next six years, extending their presence with the American audience. The deal promotes the operation and promotion of the team’s U.S. tours, known otherwise as the Mextour.
The partnership encompases the 2022 men’s FIFA Wolrd Cup in Qatar, and the 2026 edition of the tournament hosted in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The United States is home to an extensive Mexican population, currently estimated to be about 36 million people of Mexican descent. Roughly one third of the Mexican soccer federation’s revenue comes from the U.S., across matchday income, TV rights and sponsorship deals, according to Mexican Football federation president Yon de Luisa.
“For us, the U.S. market is part of our home market because we have about 40 million of our people in the U.S.,” de Luisa said in an interview.
“And in terms of purchasing capacity, you can expect that the 40 million in the U.S. has way bigger purchasing capacity than the 120 million in Mexico.”
The Mexican team’s jersey outsells any other country in the United States, including any USMNT related apparel, according to online sports retailer Soccer.com. Since 2003, El Tri’s U.S. games have averaged more than 50,000 spectators, including a record 90,526 at a 2010 game in Los Angeles against New Zealand.
Given the interest, several commercial opportunities exist for Mexico in the US. SUM has brokered many corporate deals for the team, including partnerships with Adidas AT&T, General Mills and Home Depot.
The organization, however, does not sell the team’s media rights, which are sold directly by the federation.
The newest deal between SUM and the Mexican federation plans to increase work with other El Tri branches, including the women’s senior team and youth sides. The contract will also see more opportunities for the Mexican men’s team to play in the U.S. in the next four years, de Luisa added.
Currently, Mexico is slated to host Nigeria, Uruguay and Ecuador in the upcoming weeks as part of the Mextour.
