{"id":17061,"date":"2026-06-22T21:02:54","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T21:02:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=17061"},"modified":"2026-06-22T21:02:54","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T21:02:54","slug":"the-world-cup-40-years-after-maradona-in-mexico-two-hands-and-plenty-of-handouts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=17061","title":{"rendered":"The World Cup, 40 years after Maradona in Mexico: Two hands and plenty of handouts"},"content":{"rendered":"

On June 22, 1986, Diego Armando Maradona scored his infamous \u201cHand of God\u201d goal at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City.<\/p>

Read more \u2018Love Island USA\u2019 Season 8: OC bombshell gets dumped from Villa ahead of Casa Amor<\/a><\/p>\n

On June 19, 2026, Miguel Almir\u00f3n was sent off for putting his hand on his mouth during a match between his team, Paraguay, and Turkey.<\/p>\n

Two hands, two different outcomes. The game and the World Cup have changed a lot these past 40 years, but they also remain the same.<\/p>\n

On a sunny afternoon in Santa Clara, California, the rebranded Levi\u2019s Stadium, called San Francisco Bay Area Stadium for FIFA\u2019s sake, stands lonely among a sea of empty parking spaces. It is about to welcome the world.<\/p>\n

Forty years ago, the mighty Azteca Stadium hosted two nations still reeling from the conflict sparked by a group of islands on the tip of the continent. The two countries couldn\u2019t even agree on a name: the English called them the Falkland Islands, while the Argentines called them the Islas Malvinas.<\/p>\n

While the war ended years before, the hostility spread from the stands \u2014 with skirmishes among supporters \u2014 into the field, when Maradona tricked the referee and the world with the World Cup\u2019s most infamous goal, punching the ball into the net with his fist above England\u2019s goalie Peter Shilton. The Argentine soccer genius would dazzle, scoring again that day, zigzagging between his rivals to put the ball in the net and earn the moniker \u201cGoal of the Century.\u201d The final score was 2-0 and Argentina went on to win the tournament in Mexico.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s in a name?<\/h4>\n

Like a visit to the Taj Mahal in India, or the Grand Canyon in Arizona, it is difficult to convey the experience of witnessing Azteca Stadium during a World Cup game. Pictures and videos don\u2019t do any of these landmarks justice.<\/p>\n

Thus, comparing Levi\u2019s Stadium to Azteca is unfair. One has hosted three World Cups, the latter is doing it for the first time. But they do have one recent similarity: Both have temporarily changed their names to\u00a0host the global soccer tournament.<\/p>

\n<\/div>\n

This past Friday at Levi\u2019s Stadium, the clothing company\u2019s logo was covered with off-white fabric. The brand has embraced the FIFA-forced change so much that it cheekily tweaked its logo on its Instagram page. Still, Levi\u2019s branding was easy to recognize all around the stadium thanks to its distinctive shape. Azteca, now called Banorte Stadium due to a recent marketing deal, is called Mexico City Stadium during the 2026 World Cup.<\/p>\n

History will remember that Maradona scored his goals at Azteca Stadium, though.<\/p>\n

At 4 p.m. on June 19 in Santa Clara, stadium gates opened to welcome Paraguayan and Turkish fans \u2014 mostly clad in red and white. Mexicans in green, black or white official Adidas jerseys, or knockoffs in those and other colors, made up the bulk of fans from other countries beyond the two competing on the day.<\/p>\n

Many people wore Messi\u2019s No. 10 jersey in Argentina\u2019s powder blue and white, while others were clad in the U.S. men\u2019s national team\u2019s 1994 denim-colored jersey, Brazilian and Colombian yellow and lots representing popular professional teams, like Barcelona, Boca Juniors, Galatasaray, Manchester United, Club Am\u00e9rica, Real Madrid (in three colors) and Chivas.<\/p>

\n<\/div>\n

While there were no vuvuzelas, the plastic trumpets that put South Africa on the map during the 2010 World Cup, there was lots of chanting and cheering on site. A marching band banged drums and a DJ played in the far corner. This was a global soccer fest.<\/p>\n

While people wandered the so-called fan zones making their way inside the stadium, a young man in his late 20s or early 30s, calling himself Brian from Frisco and dressed in a shiny yellow shirt and black shorts and socks, flashed a referee\u2019s yellow card to people waiting to take a selfie with him. \u201cI\u2019m just a guy,\u201d he said when asked for his full name.<\/p>\n

Others lined up around marketing stands along the outskirts of the stadium. When this reporter joined one line and asked a family dressed in Mexico\u2019s green what the line was for, they said they didn\u2019t know. When they figured out that the end featured a Coca-Cola picture panel with the letters \u201cTUR\u201d and \u201cPAR\u201d and \u201cSan Francisco Bay Area,\u201d they moved on to the next line, disappointed.<\/p>\n