Houston Mayor John Whitmire Flips Coin at Clasico de Mexico, Promises More Soccer Accessibility

More than 50,000 tickets have already been sold for the match, which kicks off at 4:30 p.m. at the home of the Houston Texans.

When Houston Mayor John Whitmire was asked to participate in the coin flip before Sunday’s Clasico de Mexico at NRG Stadium, he didn’t hesitate to clear a spot in his busy schedule.

He agreed in part to acknowledge the importance of the rivalry between Chivas de Guadalajara and Club America to the fourth largest city in the United States.

More than 50 percent of the population in Houston is Latino. The majority of those Latinos are of Mexican descent. Latinos in Houston love their Astros, Texans, Rockets, Dynamo and Dash. They also keep up with Liga MX, especially Chivas and Club America.

Being that Monterrey, Mexico, is a stone’s throw away from Houston, one can argue that Monterrey and Tigres are the two most popular Liga MX clubs in the Houston area.PRIMETIME Sports, which is bringing the Clasico de Mexico to Houston, also brought the Clásico Regio between Monterrey and Tigres to NRG last year.

Chivas and Club America, though, are the two most popular and winningest clubs in Liga MX history. Those are the two greatest soccer brands in North America. They are essentially the New York Yankees and Dallas Cowboys of Mexican team sports.

Similar to Red Sox-Yankees

The Chivas-Club America rivalry is akin to the rivalry between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA or the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in baseball.

More than 50,000 tickets have already been sold for the match, which kicks off at 4:30 p.m. at the home of the Houston Texans. That is an impressive turnout for a friendly match between clubs who will feature some of their youngest players while their national team players are on international duty.

The early ticket sales promise to make the crowd for Sunday’s Clasico de Mexico the largest ever to watch a match between Liga MX teams in Texas.

“Soccer has a great future in Houston,” Whitmire said. “My administration wants to be a part of that success.”

¡Que comience la fiesta del 108 aniversario! 💙💛 pic.twitter.com/E0DfVjzcYv

Whitmire, who spent 50 years in the Texas Legislature before becoming Houston’s mayor, is a regular presence at Houston sporting events. He carried the legislation that created the Houston-Harris County Sports Authority and led the way for the stadium boom that saw the city and county build Minute Maid Park, NRG Stadium, Toyota Center and Shell Stadium since 2000.

Commitment to soccer

On Thursday, Whitmire met with Houston Dynamo owner Ted Segal to discuss ways to make soccer more accessible to Houstonians.

“I met (Thursday) with the owner of the Houston Dynamo, Mr. Segal, to ask how we can work together and collaborate so that every resident of Houston can experience soccer,” Whitmire said.

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Club America, which has a history of signing foreign stars, has won a record 15 Liga MX titles over its 108 years. Chivas has won 12 league titles, which is the second most in Liga MX history.

Club America is based in Mexico City, the largest city in Mexico. Chivas is based in Mexico’s second largest city. Furthermore, Chivas is beloved throughout Mexico because the club has a tradition of only signing players from Mexico. That tradition has changed in recent years to include Mexican Americans, but Chivas remains the only club in Liga MX that proudly fields rosters only with players of Mexican descent.

“We were looking to come to Houston for a long time,” PRIMETIME Sports Entertainment CEO Fernando Orvañanos said. “It finally came through. Obviously it’s the biggest game in Liga MX and the Mexican league. And to bring it to Houston, it’s great. We have great attendance, and hopefully we bring it back.”

Full Clasico de Mexico experience

Renowned Mexican tenor Javier Camarena will sing the Mexican national anthem. Jose Ignacio “Big Charro” Cortez, who is from Houston, will sing the U.S. national anthem. The halftime show will be performed by the Kumbia Kings of A.B. Quintanilla, the younger brother of the late Tejano music star Selena.

PRIMETIME Sports will also hold a pregame FanFest billed as Fiesta Futbolera. Legends from both clubs will sign autographs at the Fiesta Futbolera. Once the crowd spills into the stadium, Whitmire will perform one of the final acts before kickoff.

“It really brings the game to the next level,” Orvañanos said of the mayor’s coin flip. “It really shows his appreciation for Hispanic culture and for sports and for Houston itself.

“Having him (there) basically recognizes these