The History of "Dos a Cero"

It’s a phrase that cuts deep for Mexican soccer fans. For Americans, it's a pedestal. “Dos a Cero,” which translates to “two to zero,” tells the story of a bitter rivalry, turned on its head. The United States, North America’s sleeping giant for so long, finally managed to turn the tide and beat their southern counterparts, giving birth to this infamous scoreline that continues to haunt El Tri to this day.

Despite winning their first-ever meeting in 1934, the United States failed to taste victory against Mexico again until 1980. During that time Mexico firmly planted its foot on the neck of American soccer, winning 21 of the 24 meetings between them.

The rivalry existed in name only. The obvious geographic and political elements were present, but the tie lacked a genuine competitive edge.

In the 1990s, the sport finally began to take off in the United States. The U.S. soccer infrastructure took shape thanks to the World Cup in 1994 and the birth of Major League Soccer soon after, allowing this sporting powerhouse to make its presence known in the soccer world. A few wins over Mexico brought the rivalry back to the forefront as results either way were no longer a foregone conclusion.

The turning point came in Columbus, Ohio during a 2001 World Cup Qualifying match. Temperatures dropped into the low 20s during the game prompting the Mexican media to dub the match, “La Guerra Fria” or "The Cold War". The match finished 2-0 in favor of the hosts, a scoreline that would prove familiar to the Columbus crowd, as three further matches played at the stadium also finished with the same result.

Though these games laid the groundwork for the history of “Dos a Cero”, the most famous match in this storied rivalry occurred on the game’s biggest stage. During the knockout round of the 2002 FIFA World Cup, the U.S. faced Mexico and advanced thanks to, you guessed it, another 2-0 scoreline.

Brian McBride and 20-year-old Landon Donovan provided the goals in Jeonju, South Korea as the Americans sent their opponents packing. This humiliation stoked the animosity that already existed between these two countries and only ensured that the rivalry would live long in the hearts and minds of players and fans alike.

Since then, the United States has flipped the script, winning 19 times to Mexico’s nine. Of those 19, three have been finals with The USMNT claiming trophies over El Tri during both the 2021 and 2024 CONCACAF Nations League Finals as well as the 2021 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final.

On Tuesday, Oct. 15, that famous rivalry will be renewed for a friendly match at Akron stadium, home of C.D. Guadalajara in Mexico. Along with their game against Panama three days prior, the contest will serve as a welcome introduction for the USMNT and new manager, Mauricio Pochettino, before the CONCACAF Nations League Quarterfinals in November.

Get your USA gear and Mexico gear from SoccerPost.com, and make sure to tune into the match this Tuesday at 9:30 PM CST on TNT and MAX.