Famous Soccer Players from Mexico

The Mexican national team played its first international match back on 1st January, 1923. Since then, it has seen good and bad times both on and off the field. They made it to the 4th position of the FIFA rankings in February 1998, and stooped to an all time low of 33rd position in July 2009. Amidst all these highs and lows, the nation produced some exceptionally talented players, who made it big in the international competitions as well as in the club championships across the world.

Top 10 Best Mexican Soccer Players

Even though Mexico was never able to make it to the finals of the FIFA World Cup in their 14 appearances, they did manage to reach the quarterfinals in two. Other than this, they also won the Confederations Cup in 1999. Meanwhile a number of Mexican players amazed the world with their brilliant performances at both the levels of the game.

Hugo Sanchez: Playing from the position of the striker, Sanchez scored 29 goals for the national team in 79 appearances. He represented the Mexican national team in three world cups, and also played for four European clubs, including the Real Madrid, in his overall career almost spanning two decades. He holds the distinction of being the only Mexican player to make it to Pele's list of the 100 Best Soccer Players of All Time.

Luis de la Fuente: Yet another important inclusion in the list of 'who made it big' in the world arena was Luis de la Fuente. His amazing performance at the 1934 soccer World Cup brought in hordes of offers for this Mexican star. Though he played from mid-field position, his ability to cover the entire field helped him to score much more goals than the strikers, and eventually made him one of the stars of the Mexican soccer scene.

Rafael Márquez: With 92 national appearances, and 11 goals to his credit, Rafael Marquez is yet another Mexican soccer star who rightfully deserves a place in the list of world's famous soccer players. He plays as the center back for the national side as well as his current club Barcelona.

Antonio Carbajal: Antonio Carbajal boasts about being the only player to represent Mexico in five different World Cups. He also became the youngest goal keeper to make an appearance in the world cup. Since his debut on 24th June, 1950, against Brazil, Carbajal played 48 international matches for the Mexican national team.

Cuauhtémoc Blanco: Blanco is regarded as one of the most talented Mexican player of the last two decades. He has made a 119 appearances for the national side, and scored a total of 38 international goals, in his career. He also holds the distinction of being the only Mexican player to win an award in a major international FIFA competition.

Jared Borgetti: With 46 goals in 89 international appearances Borgetti is the all time leading goal scorer for Mexico. He was the star performer for Mexico in the 2002 World Cup as well as the 2001 and 2004 Copa America competitions. Interestingly enough, Borgetti is quite popular for his amazing ability to score goals with header.

Claudio Suarez: Suarez holds the distinction of being the most capped Mexican soccer star. Between 1992 and 2006, he played 177 matches for the Mexican National team. Suarez made it to the Mexican world cup squads on three different occasions.

Luis Hernandez: Other than being the third highest goal scorer for Mexico, Hernandez also has the distinction of being the leading goal scorer for Mexico in the world cup. Playing from the center forward position, Hernandez played 87 international matches, and scored 35 goals, between 1995 and 2002.

Manuel Rosas Sanchez: Manuel Rosas Sanchez became the first player to score a goal on the penalty kick in the world cup, when he scored the goal against Argentina in 1930. He also held the distinction of being the youngest player to score a world cup goal, until Pele dislodged him from the number one spot.

Carlos Vela: Carlos Vela plays as a striker for the Mexican national team as well as Arsenal in the English Premier League. After an illustrious career with the under 17 and under 20 national side, Vela joined the Mexican national team in 2007 and has scored 9 goals in 29 appearances since then.

Mexico has been churning out a number of soccer players every year, but these ten players mentioned here are going to rule the hearts of Mexican soccer fans forever.