2011 Women's World Cup Preview - Mexico

Jun 25, 2011 - 9:53 PM Philadelphia, PA (Sports Network) - Mexico's women's national team will be competing at its second World Cup this summer in Germany, and they are doing so after a landmark victory in qualifying.

The only other time that the Aztecas reached the World Cup was in 1999 after winning a qualification playoff.

But this year was different as the team pulled off a stunning 2-1 upset of the United States in the semifinals to book an automatic place in Germany.

Playing in front of its home crowd, Mexico beat the Americans for the first time in 25 games, with El Tri having lost 23 of the previous 24 meetings with a draw and the U.S. outscoring its neighbors to the south by a combined 106-9 score.

So if anything, the win over the Americans illustrates how far the Mexican team has come in recent years, and they will be hoping to carry that momentum into this summer's tournament.

Drawn into Group B, Mexico will not face one of the world's heavyweights as England, Japan and New Zealand comprise the rest of the group, giving coach Leonardo Cuellar's team a real chance to earn its first point at the event.

In 1999, Mexico went 0-3 in group play with losses to Brazil, Germany and Italy by combined scores of 15-1.

Only one player remains on the roster from the 1999 team, striker Maribel Dominguez, and even at 33, she will still be the player that Mexico looks to for goals.

Dominguez scored the only goal at the 1999 World Cup for Mexico, and after scoring six in qualifying this year, she will lead the way along with fellow striker Veronica Perez.

Guadalupe Worbis will offer support from midfield for Cuellar's team, while the back line is anchored by Rosario Saucedo.

Group B appears to be the most wide open of the four groups in Germany, and with Mexico having already proven it can compete with the best in the world, a spot in the knockout round is not out of the question.

Cuellar has already helped Mexico improve in recent years, and he is focused simply on continuing the process.

"Things are improving. It's all part of the process that women's football goes through," Cuellar said. "Finishing in second place (in CONCACAF qualifying) is an important step forward. (Women's) football is making an impact, which puts pressure on our team to achieve good things. We're going to work really hard to ensure that at this World Cup we can send out the best national team we've ever had."

PAST ACHIEVEMENTS:

-- FIFA World Cup qualifier: 1999.