Mexico National Team’s Five Best Players of 2025—Ranked

Young talents and veteran standouts stole the show for El Tri over the last 12 months.

Mexico lifted two pieces of silverware in 2025. / Omar Vega/Getty Images

It was a year of ups and downs for the Mexico national team, but through it all, there were a number of players that stood out above the rest, delivering when called upon and raising their status as key members of El Tri ahead of the 2026 World Cup.

Mexico re-established its historical status as the dominant force in Concacaf during Javier Aguirre’s first full year since returning for a third stint as Mexico’s manager. El Tri deservedly won both the Nations League and the Gold Cup, beating every other major national team in the region along the way.

Those triumphs resulted in by far the most successful year El Tri has enjoyed since the start of the decade. Still, a six-game winless run to end the year stains what was an otherwise very solid 2025.

But perhaps more importantly, the last 12 months were when players desperately needed to step up and showcase why they deserve a spot in the 2026 World Cup roster. In the end, some established stars strengthened their position within the national team and various inexperienced players thrived when given the chance, becoming crucial parts of El Tri at the perfect time.

Sports Illustrated ranks the five best Mexico national team players of 2025, based solely on their performances with El Tri.

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5. Johan Vasquez

Johan Vásquez is Mexico’s best defender. / Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

If there was any question who Mexico’s defensive leader was entering the year, Johan Vásquez silenced all the doubters with a superlative 2025, where he stood out for his consistency, leadership and overall quality in the heart of defense.

The Genoa captain has blossomed into a stellar, well-rounded center back. His quality on the ball and athletic ability have never been questioned, but in recent times he’s gotten rid of the inconsistency and mistake-prone genes that defined his early career.

Vásquez started 12 of the 13 games he played with El Tri this year, wearing the captain’s armband multiple times. During Mexico’s title-winning campaigns, he was more than a solid presence in defense—an area that became a strength of the team under Aguirre.

Given his current level, it’s almost hard to believe he didn’t play a single minute during the 2022 World Cup. Nevertheless, at 27 years old, Vásquez’s had arguably the best year of his career and he’s a guaranteed starter when Mexico hosts South Africa in the opening game of the 2026 World Cup.

Simply put, he’s one of if not the best center back in all of Concacaf.

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4. Erik Lira

Erik Lira has quietly put the pressure on Mexico captain Edson Álvarez. / Omar Vega/Getty Images

Coming into 2025, Erik Lira had played just five games donning El Tri’s shirt. Now, he will head into the new year having collected 19 caps for Mexico in total.

Lira, constantly overlooked in the past, found in Aguirre a manager that understood his strengths. The tenacious midfielder has thrived at the club level for Cruz Azul since the start of 2024, playing in a hybrid role as a defensive midfielder that drops back to serve as a third center back.

Aguirre replicated that with El Tri this year and Lira excelled, especially in the Nations League semifinal vs. Canada. Mexico as a team struggled during the latter part of the year, but Lira still found a way to showcase his quality and was El Tri’s best player during the September international action.

The only thing keeping Lira from a more prominent role is the presence of Mexico’s captain, Edson Álvarez. “El Machín” is the undisputed starter, but Lira has emerged as an excellent alternative.

If Lira keeps up his level, it wouldn’t be shocking to see him get the nod as the midfield anchor against low blocks next summer.

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3. Marcel Ruiz

Marcel Ruiz has blossomed into a brilliant midfielder. / Omar Vega/Getty Images

Calls for Marcel Ruiz to be given a look with El Tri reached deafening levels until Aguirre finally gave him a much deserved call-up for the Gold Cup in the summer. The once complete afterthought didn’t just seize his opportunity—he made himself an essential part of Mexico’s World Cup hopes.

Ruiz made 13 of his 14 career appearances for El Tri in 2025. He began the Gold Cup on the bench, but after a strong performance in Mexico’s second game of the tournament, he went on to start 11 of the team’s final 12 games of the year.

The Toluca man has the quality to operate all over the midfield, a modern day box-to-box midfielder that’s as capable on the ball as he is sticking a leg in to destroy opponent incursions. His profile is a rarity in Mexico and the most promising thing is that he seems to keep improving by the day.

Despite his inexperience at the international stage, Ruiz played like a veteran from the moment he stepped on the pitch in the Gold Cup. His poise, vision and technique were on full display, attributes that have turned him into one of the best players at Aguirre’s disposal.

Ruiz’s stock skyrocketed in 2025 and he is now poised to start come the World Cup. At 25 years old, a good performance next summer could easily see him make the jump to European soccer, as Liga MX is starting to look too easy for him.

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2. Gilberto Mora

Gilberto Mora became the youngest player in history to win a senior international trophy. / Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images

Gilberto Mora is, without a doubt, the best prospect Mexico has produced over the past 15 years. In 2025, the young Tijuana gem had such a spectacular breakthrough that he forced not only El Tri, but the entire world to take notice.

Luis Chávez’s devastating injury forced Aguirre to search for alternatives midway through the Gold Cup. In comes 16-year-old Mora, getting his first taste of Mexico’s senior national team and ... he’s been El Tri’s best player ever since.

The teenager bagged the game-winning assist in the Gold Cup semifinal and then toyed with USMNT players in the final, becoming the youngest player ever to lift a senior international trophy. Mora missed Mexico’s next four games because he was representing El Tri in the U-20 World Cup, but his performances in the tournament made it abundantly clear he’s already soared past the youth international level.

Mora has game-changing qualities no other El Tri player has; he sees things and has an understanding of the game rarely seen at such a young age. It’s easy to see why some of the best teams in the world are salivating at the prospect of acquiring him when he comes of age.

The Mexican wonderkid will make his World Cup debut at just 17 years old and it’s not an exaggeration to say he will play a vital role in El Tri’s tournament success.

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1. Raul Jimenez

Raúl Jiménez is El Tri’s best payer. / Omar Vega/Getty Images

Mexico scored 22 goals across 18 games in 2025, and nine of them were courtesy of its best player, Raúl Jiménez.

Jiménez scored a brace in both the Nations League semifinal and final, the game-winner in the Gold Cup semifinal and the equalizer in the final against the USMNT. Whenever Mexico needed it most, the veteran appeared, reinforcing his status as the team’s most important player of the Aguirre era.

It was widely accepted that Jiménez’s best days were behind him, but his fairytale resurgence with El Tri over the past year has proved everyone wrong. The Fulham striker is now Mexico’s third all-time leading goalscorer, just eight goals shy of Javier “Chicharito” Hernández.

The once Wolverhampton Wanderers talisman has aged like fine wine, especially with Mexico. Jiménez’s link-up play and ability to play with his back towards goals have turned him into a complete striker, becoming the beginning, middle and end of Aguirre’s attacking system.

Jiménez will play his fourth World Cup and is poised to be El Tri’s undisputed starting striker in the tournament for the first time, a deserved reward after the best year of his career with the national team.

It goes deeper than that, though—it’s a deserved reward for one of the greatest strikers in Mexican soccer history.

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