CONCACAF Gold Cup Final

USA vs Mexico

NRG Stadium

July 7, 2025 at 0:00 UK

Match preview

It has been anything but a smooth ride, but the Americans have made it to the final for the third time in the last four Gold Cup tournaments and now have the chance to lift the trophy for an eighth time.

Victory in this match would mark Mauricio Pochettino's first international coaching triumph and provide the Argentinian with some sweet vindication after the criticism he received prior to the Gold Cup, when his team lost four consecutive games.

The Yanks have won three of their last four appearances in the final of this tournament, posting a clean sheet in two of those victories.

Sunday will mark the fourth time they have played in the final of a major CONCACAF tournament this decade. The United States have won all three previous competitions, including the 2021 Gold Cup.

They have won their last nine matches across all competitions when leading or drawing after 45 minutes, a position they have been in four times at this year's Gold Cup.

Houston has not exactly served as a fortress for the men’s team in the past, with the United States winning only one previous match there, though they have won two matches in Texas during this tournament: a 1-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in Austin, followed by a 2-1 win against Haiti in Arlington.

The United States have had the upper hand against Mexico in many decisive games recently, winning all four meetings against them in the final of a CONCACAF competition this decade and keeping three clean sheets in the process, including a 1-0 victory the last time they met in a Gold Cup final in 2021.

In a physically demanding and tense semi-final against a highly aggressive Honduran team, the Mexicans prevailed thanks to their solid defensive play.

Javier Aguirre is only the second manager in the national team's history to lead them to multiple Gold Cup finals, having guided them to victory in 2009. Gerardo Martino is the only other Mexican boss to have made two finals in this competition.

So far in this tournament, Aguirre’s team have been impenetrable at the back, keeping four successive clean sheets and conceding three of the lowest expected goals ratios in the competition, allowing a rate of just 0.10 to La H on Wednesday.

They have also recorded five consecutive clean sheets in the knockout stage of the Gold Cup, equalling their streak from 1993 to 1998, and could claim a record 10^(th) tournament victory on Sunday.

Overall, they are allowing an average of just 1.6 shots on target from the opposition in this year's Gold Cup — the lowest of any team in the competition.

Whatever Aguirre has said to his team at half-time, his messages have clearly been well received, with seven of Mexico’s eight goals being scored in the final 45 minutes.

Only twice this century have the reigning Gold Cup champions retained their title in the subsequent competition, though El Tri were the last to do so in 2009 and 2011, both times against the US.

Recent Performance

USA CONCACAF Gold Cup form:WWWWW

USA form (all competitions):LWWWWW

Mexico CONCACAF Gold Cup form:WWDWW

Mexico form (all competitions):WWWDWW

Team News

In the semi-finals, Pochettino gave Walker Zimmerman his first appearance at the 2025 Gold Cup, bringing him on in place of Max Arfsten for the final five minutes plus stoppage time. Meanwhile, the US made no changes to their starting 11.

Should he play in the final, Tyler Adams will reach the half-century mark for caps with the Yanks. Malik Tillman could reach the quarter-century mark if he plays, while Tim Ream could reach the three-quarter century mark on Sunday, earning his 74^(th) cap on Wednesday.

Diego Luna scored twice in the first half of their semi-final victory, netting the fastest goal in the history of the Gold Cup knockout round for the Yanks (three minutes and 16 seconds). Meanwhile, Miles Robinson is hoping lightning will strike twice, as he scored the winning goal the last time they played El Tri in the final of this tournament in 2021.

From the quarter-finals to the semi-finals, Aguirre made two changes to the Mexican starting 11: Cesar Montes and Mateo Chavez replaced Jesus Gallardo and Erik Lira.

Captain Edson Álvarez played the full 90 minutes in central midfield and is now just nine caps shy of 100. Meanwhile, César Huerta is just two appearances away from reaching 25 caps.

Raúl Jiménez scored his 41^(st) goal for El Tri on Wednesday. Meanwhile, 16-year-old Gilberto Rafael Mora Zambrano became the youngest player to record a Gold Cup assist since 2013 and Luis Malagón made just one save to earn his fourth consecutive clean sheet.

Possible starting lineup

USA possible starting lineup:

Freese; Freeman, Richards, Ream, Arfsten; Adams, De la Torre; Berhalter, Tillman, Luna; Agyemang

Mexico possible starting lineup:

Malagon; Araujo, Montes, Vasquez, Gallardo; Rodriguez, Ed. Alvarez, L. Chavez; Alvarado, Jimenez, Vega