It’s already been an eventful 2025 FIFA Club World Cup for C.F. Pachuca. The club’s ownership group, Grupo Pachuca, spent several weeks fighting to keep their other Liga MX club, Club León–who qualified thanks to their 2023 CONCACAF Champions League title, in the 2025 tournament. But despite several appeals, FIFA ruled that León could not compete due to Pachuca already being in the tournament, as both teams playing would violate FIFA’s multi-club ownership rules. The spot left vacant by León has since been filled by LAFC, who defeated Club América 2-1 in their play-in game arranged by FIFA.
Now, you probably have a few questions after reading that opening paragraph, including:
- What?
- So one owner can run two teams in the same league in the same country?
- Where’s the Tylenol? My head hurts.
I can guarantee you’re not alone. This is the magical world of soccer in the Americas, where 80,000 fans pack the stadiums and league bylaws follow the Pirates of the Caribbean protocol: “the code is more what you’d call guidelines than an actual rules.”
This year’s drama aside, C.F. Pachuca has had a strong recent history when it comes to international competitions, including two trophies in FIFA Club competitions just last year. Los Tuzos should have a strong chance at continuing that trend this year.
CLUB BIO
Location: Pachuca, Hidalgo, Mexico
Nickname: Los Tuzos (The Gophers), CFP
Manager: Guillermo Almada
CLUB HISTORY
While they aren’t the most famous Liga MX team in terms of international name recognition, few teams have had as big of an impact on Mexico’s rich soccer heritage as C.F. Pachuca. It was in the club’s home state of Hidalgo where British miners were said to have first introduced the sport to locals. Workers would play pick-up games in their free time between long shifts in the mines. After a few years, two British mining executives founded Pachuca Football Club, the first organized club in Mexico and the entity that would later become C.F. Pachuca. Today, the club’s historic and long-standing connection to the local mining community is referenced in their nickname, “Los Tuzos,” meaning “The Gophers.”
In 1904, Pachuca (then known as Pachuca AC) became one of the founding members of Mexico’s first football league. The club found plenty of success in the early years, winning the league title three times between 1904 and 1920, as well as the Copa Tower, the predecessor to Copa MX, twice. In the early 1920s, however, labor activism and economic shifts following the Mexican Revolution disrupted the local mining community. As a result, the vast majority of Pachuca AC’s players relocated to other parts of the country, forcing the club to disband in 1922. They re-formed briefly from 1950 to 1952, but quickly shut down again due to economic challenges.
In 1960, the club was re-established again as C.F. Pachuca, and this time, the club stuck around for good. The modern iteration of the club quickly found success in Mexico’s Segunda Division, winning the second division’s top cup twice and their first league title in 1967, which also earned them their first promotion. The club would be relegated again in 1974 and would spend the vast majority of the next quarter-century in Mexico’s second division.
Fortunes changed in the late 1990s. C.F. Pachuca was promoted back to the top division in 1998. Rather than another brief stint, this iteration of the team, coached by current Mexico manager Javier Aguirre, would become one of the country’s most dominant teams. The club won their first top-division trophy in 1999, securing the Invierno (the portion of the Liga MX season that runs from Summer to Winter — now known as the Apertura.) That kicked off what supporters consider C.F. Pachuca’s Golden Era. Led by stars such as forwards Gabriel Caballero and Sergio Santa, defender Alberto Rodriguez, and goalkeeper Miguel Calero, the club won nine more trophies over the next ten seasons, including four CONCACAF Champions Cups.
The club’s more recent years have been a mixed bag. Despite winning six more trophies in the past 15 years, they’ve failed to be the same consistent force as they were in the 2000s, often finishing around the middle of the table.
2024/2025 SEASON
This past season has continued the “mix bag” trend for C.F. Pachuca. The Summer of 2024 began with tremendous international success. The club won their sixth CONCACAF Champions Cup, knocking off the Columbus Crew 3-0 in the final, which — hey! — is a big reason to cheer for them at TQL Stadium this tournament! They followed up that title with championships in the FIFA Derby of the Americas and FIFA Challengers Cup, earning them a spot in the inaugural Intercontinental Cup against Real Madrid.
Things back in Mexico were quite a different story. The club finished in the bottom three during the Apertura, one of their worst domestic finishes in more than 20 years. The club did rebound during the Clausura (Mexico’s January to May portion of the schedule), finishing 8th in the table and qualifying for the playoff round, where they put up a solid effort against eventual runners-up Club América.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
C.F. Pachuca’s strength lies in its attack. Former Premier League mainstay Salomón Rondón, at the ripe age of 35, has been a juggernaut for the club since joining the team in 2024, scoring 31 goals in 59 appearances. Rondón formed great chemistry with Moroccan international Oussama Idrissi over the past season, while Brazilian John Kennedy (on loan from Fluminense) has provided a solid bump of depth scoring.
Also keep an eye on two rising stars from Mexico’s international youth system, midfielder/wingback Bryan Gonzalez (age 22) and defensive midfielder Elías Montiel (age 19). Both played big minutes for C.F. Pachuca in their latest Liga MX campaign. Montiel has been a mainstay with the Mexico U20 team and Gonzalez recently earned his first cap with the senior team. With the 2026 World Cup on the horizon, aforementioned Mexico manager Javier Aguirre will almost certainly have an eye on his old club to see how these young players stack up against solid competition from around the world.
OUTLOOK
Pachuca’s only game at TQL Stadium this tournament is their opener against RB Salzburg, and as Jacob Holton mentioned in his preview for Salzburg, that game will say a lot about which team moves on from their group. Considering those two are grouped with Real Madrid and an Al-Hilal club featuring familiar names like Aleksandar Mitrović, Ruben Neves, and João Cancelo, there’s not exactly any room for error in the group stage.
Still, Pachuca is a team that finished their domestic league on an upswing and clearly have experience playing in high-stakes Cup tournaments. They’ll certainly be considered the underdogs of this group, but they’re more than capable of securing a good result against both Salzburg and Al-Hilal. In a group where Real Madrid is expected to run ramshod over everyone, one good result may be just enough to sneak C.F. Pachuca into the knockout round.
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