What Is ‘Dos a Cero’? A History Of The USA-Mexico Rivalry’s Signature Scoreline

Within the USA-Mexico rivalry, there is a scoreline that sends one fanbase into elation whereas irking the opposite. 

Whether or not it is in a high-stakes World Cup recreation or in a “pleasant” match in opposition to El Tri, you’ll hear shouted out amongst USA supporters every time it flashes throughout the jumbotron. You will see it on T-shirts and even see it adorned on scarves. 

Dos a Cero! — which is just, “Two to Zero” in Spanish. 

‘Dos A Cero’ is eternally tied to the USA-Mexico males’s soccer rivalry. (Picture credit score ought to learn PAUL VERNON/AFP by way of Getty Photos)

The two-0 scoreline carries significance for the U.S., particularly as Mexico’s historic dominance has shifted towards a extra aggressive rivalry for the reason that flip of the century. 

So, what’s Dos A Cero? And why does it proceed to be introduced up? Let’s dive in. 

Temporary Snapshot of USA-Mexico Rivalry

First off, some historical past of the general USA-Mexico males’s soccer rivalry that stretches again to 1934 – even when it did not even start in both nation.

The primary recreation between the 2 neighbors was a 4-2 win for the U.S. in a World Cup qualifying match, with the sport held in Rome forward of the 1934 match in Italy. However Mexico would dominate for the remainder of the century, with the USMNT not profitable once more till 1980. 

In all, there have been 78 matches between the 2 groups, with Mexico holding the benefit with 37 wins. The U.S. has 24 wins, and there have been 17 attracts. Solely as soon as has Mexico misplaced on house soil, a 2012 pleasant.

Earlier than the flip of the century, Mexico had the higher hand in opposition to the U.S. in males’s soccer. (Picture credit score ought to learn JOHN MOTTERN/AFP by way of Getty Photos)

However in relation to video games with one thing on the road – whether or not it is in World Cup qualifying matches, Gold Cup clashes, and even within the World Cup itself – it is the USA with the higher hand. 

The USA has 16 wins in aggressive matches, with Mexico having 14, and having 9 attracts. 

The fashionable period of the USA-Mexico rivalry has turned far more aggressive as gamers from either side change into stars at a number of the greatest golf equipment in Europe. (Picture by Matthew Visinsky/Icon Sportswire by way of Getty Photos)

And as we’ll element beneath, the one time the 2 groups met within the precise World Cup was in 2002, when the U.S. beat Mexico to advance to the quarterfinals – by a rating of 2-0. The sport, held in South Korea, was the third and final time the rivalry has been performed outdoors of North America.

With curiosity within the sport rising after the U.S. hosted the 1994 World Cup and the founding of Main League Soccer in 1996, that helped shift the tide within the USA-Mexico rivalry. Since 2000, the USMNT has 20 wins in comparison with Mexico’s 19 (with 4 attracts).

A ‘Chilly Warfare’ Solidifies An Notorious Scoreline

A pleasant match between the 2 groups on the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Oct. 5, 2000 marked a turning level within the rivalry. It marked the debut of USMNT legend Landon Donovan, who scored the winner within the 2-0 win that may sign extra issues to return.

 Landon Donovan’s debut within the USMNT jersey got here in a 2000 match in opposition to Mexico, that ended with him scoring within the 2-0 win. (Credit score: Jeff Gross /Allsport)

5 months later, the 2 groups met below a lot totally different circumstances. As an alternative of an exhibition match in breezy California climate, it was a World Cup qualifying match on Feb. 28, 2001, in freezing temperatures in Ohio. In a recreation that grew to become referred to as La Guerra Fria (“The Chilly Warfare”), targets by Josh Wolff and Earnie Stewart solidified a second straight 2-0 end result over Mexico. 

Then got here what stays the signature second of this rivalry and this scoreline. The 2 groups met once more on June 17, 2002, on the most important stage of all – the World Cup. In an elimination match for the correct to succeed in the quarterfinals. Donovan’s second-half purpose in Jeonju, South Korea, secured a 3rd straight Dos A Cero.

The subsequent 3 times that the U.S. hosted Mexico in World Cup qualifying matches (2005, 2009, 2013) all adopted the identical sample. Performed in Columbus. And all completed 2-0. There was even some hypothesis that Clint Dempsey purposely missed a penalty kick within the 2013 win to maintain the scoreline.

“Nah, I all the time attempt to rating … I used to be somewhat bit drained,” Dempsey instructed reporters after that recreation, citing it was his first ever penalty miss for the USMNT.

“It is this mystical factor, proper? It is like this ghost,” U.S. midfielder Alejandro Bedoya additionally mentioned concerning the reoccuring scoreline. 

Add in two wins in exhibition matches in 2007 and 2015 with the identical scoreline and El Tri followers began pondering there was a Dos A Cero curse. 

You could not escape the ‘Dos A Cero’ there for awhile. (Picture by Andy Mead/YCJ/Icon SMI/Icon Sport Media by way of Getty Photos)

The Curse Is Damaged – and ‘Dos A Cero’ 2.0

USMNT followers will all the time join the 2018 World Cup qualifying cycle with the loss to Trinidad & Tobago that saved the group from going to Russia. However there have been indicators alongside that marketing campaign that the U.S. could be coming into a low level.

The primary warning signal? Mexico lastly broke the curse of  World Cup qualifying video games held in Columbus. Rafael Marquez’s purpose within the waning minutes of the sport on Nov. 11, 2016, secured a 2-1 win for Mexico. 

“It was a brand new alternative for me, for all of us to jot down a brand new story, and we did that,” Marquez mentioned after that recreation. “It had been a very long time with no win right here, with the chilly, the difficulties, and the opponent, too.”

The ‘Dos A Cero’ curse is damaged! Mexico’s 2-1 win in 2016 would ship the U.S. squad into years of turmoil. (Picture by Robin Alam/Icon Sportswire by way of Getty Photos)

The U.S. failed to reply in its very subsequent recreation, a 4-0 loss to Costa Rica, which value Jurgen Klinnsman his job as supervisor. However the U.S. would wrestle by way of the remainder of qualifying, and in the end fell wanting reaching Russia. 

However Dos A Cero did not keep away for lengthy. It simply got here again with a slight twist. The USMNT beat Mexico as soon as once more 2-0 in a World Cup qualifying match on Nov. 21, 2021 in Ohio – however this time in Cincinnati as a substitute of Columbus. It included Christian Pulisic scoring and responding to a remark made by El Tri keeper Guillermo Ochoa saying that “Mexico is the mirror through which the [U.S.] desires to see itself. 

‘Dos A Cero’ was rekindled by Christian Pulisic in a 2021 win over Mexico. (Picture by John Dorton/ISI Pictures/Getty Photos)

Then the U.S. did once more on March 24, 2024, with an precise trophy on the road. Tyler Adams and Gio Reyna secured their spots within the Dos A Cero lore to win the Concacaf Nations League trophy over Mexico at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. 

After which one other twist, Mexico lastly secured its personal Dos A Cero. In Mauricio Pochettino’s second match accountable for the USMNT, he bought a fast introduction to the rivalry in a 2-0 loss in an Oct. 15, 2024, pleasant in Guadalajara. 

It was in a pleasant however Mauricio Pochettino’s introduction to the USA-Mexico rivalry got here in a 2-0 end result – on the dropping finish. (Picture by John Dorton/ISI Pictures/USSF/Getty Photos for USSF)

With each the USMNT and Mexico wanting to finish the summer time on a excessive notice and with a trophy, we must always anticipate an entertaining recreation in Sunday’s Gold Cup closing in Houston. It stays to be seen if we’ll see that acquainted scoreline flash throughout the stadium.

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