Mexico 2-0 Italy (lost footage of international football match; 1970)

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Mexico2-0italy19701.jpg

Italy prior to the 1970 Women's World Cup Final.

Status: Lost

On 18th October 1970, Mexico hosted Italy for a friendly international football match. Serving as a rematch between the two following the 1970 Women's World Cup, it occurred in front of at least 30,000 at Estadio Azteca, with Mexico winning 2-0. Notably, the encounter was broadcast live on Channel 2, making it one of the earliest known instances of a women's match being televised.

Background

Prior to the match, women's football had begun a resurge in popularity, after being deemphasised and even outright banned in several countries.[1] The period between 1970 to the present day has been defined as the "Third Wave" of women's football, with a major factor in the growth of popularity being the 1970 Women's World Cup, which was hosted in Italy.[2][3][4][1] Operated by the Federation of Independent European Female Football (FIEFF), the tournament ran from 7th-15th July.[4][2][3] Mexico and Italy would meet in the Semi-Finals of that tournament, with goals from Elena Schiavo helping the hosts win 2-1.[3][4] Italy would however lose the Final 2-0 to Denmark.[3][2][4] Nevertheless, the tournament was considered a success, with around 40,000 attending the Final, while Mexico was also praised for their unexpectedly strong performances, including beating England 3-2 in the third place play-off.[3][4][2] It led to growing interest from Mexico over potentially hosting the second Women's World Cup.[5][6]

Thus, a month following the 1970 Women's World Cup, the Mexican Association of Women's Football (AMFF) invited Italy for a rematch to be held in Mexico.[5][6] The inspiration apparently originated from then-Mexican Football Federation (FMF) president and FIFA vice president Guillermo Cañedo, who saw hosting the World Cup as viable.[5] However, there was competition to consider, including from Germany, Luxembourg, Spain, and Switzerland, while there were also concerns regarding the impacts the altitude and heat playing in Mexico may provide.[6][5] Therefore, inviting the Italians would enable the 1970 runners-up to assess both possible effects, and in theory, convince them that hosting the 1971 Women's World Cup in Mexico would be viable for the sport.[6][5] The match would be played during the early evening, to negate the effects as best as possible.[6]

The match occurred on 18th October 1970 at Estadio Azteca.[5][6] It is unclear regarding the match's attendance figure, as Futbolera claims the figure was around 60,000, while The History of Women's Football states it was a more modest 30,000.[5][6] Regardless, the high attendance indicated the viability of women's football in the country.[6][5] Additionally, the match would be televised across the nation courtesy of Channel 2.[7][5] While this was not the first televised women's match, as even in Mexico alone a match between America Azul and Ixtacalco was broadcast, it still certainly one of the earliest.[5] Ultimately, Mexico achieved vengeance against Italy, winning the encounter 2-0.[5] The two sides would meet again shortly afterwards at Estadio Jaslisco, with The History of Women's Football stating the match drew 70,000.[5][6] Italy would complete their tour of Mexico with a 4-0 win over Club América.[5] Thanks to the television coverage, several publications produced reviews of the match, generally being positive surrounding the women's abilities.[5] The matches indicated the growing commercial potential of women's football, resulting in FIEFF selecting Mexico for the upcoming World Cup.[5][6] In that tournament, Mexico defeated Italy 2-1 in the Semi-Finals, before losing the Final to defending champions Denmark 3-0 in front of around 110,000.[8][6]

Availability

Ultimately, many of the earlier women's football match broadcasts are difficult to come by, as they generally had lower viewership and archival interest compared to men's matches. It is implied by Futbolera that footage from the Channel 2 broadcast still exists, as it later notes the Club América-Italy broadcast is completely missing.[5] However, any supposed surviving footage of the Mexico-Italy match is not seemingly publicly available online.

See Also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Carmen Pomiés detailing the revival of women's football from the 1970s otherwise, known as the "Third Wave". Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Golditacco Aspillo detailing the 1970 Women's World Cup and its success (article in Italian). Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 La Lazio al Femminile summarising the 1970 Women's World Cup and Mexico's strong performance in it (article in Italian). Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 RSSSF detailing the results of the 1970 Women's World Cup. Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 5.15 Futbolera detailing how the match was agreed on, Channel 2's television broadcast, and how the encounter contributed to Mexico hosting the 1971 Women's World Cup. Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 The History of Women's Football detailing the two Mexico-Italy matches used to gage women's football's potential in Mexico and curb any issues involved with Mexico's plan to host the 1971 Women's World Cup. Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  7. ↑ 18th October 1970 issue of El Heraldo de Mexico reporting on the match being broadcast on Channel 2 (source used in Futbolera). Retrieved 7th Dec '22
  8. ↑ RSSSF detailing the results of the 1971 Women's World Cup. Retrieved 7th Dec '22
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