Mexico City

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Lore & Background

Mexico City is the oldest capital city in the Americas and one of only two founded by Indigenous peoples. It began as Tenochtitlan, a Mexica city built around 1325 on islands in Lake Texcoco. After the 1521 siege of Tenochtitlan, it was nearly destroyed and then rebuilt according to Spanish urban standards. In 1524, the municipality of Mexico City was established as México Tenochtitlán, and from 1585 onward it was officially known as Ciudad de México. During the Spanish colonial period, the city was a major political, administrative, and financial center. After Mexico became independent, the territory surrounding the city was organized in 1824 as the country's new and only federal district (Spanish: Distrito Federal or DF).

In Their Own Story

The opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup takes place on June 11, 2026, at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The match features the Mexican national team, one of the three host nations. The tournament is the first to be hosted by three countries and the first to include 48 teams. Mexico's status as the first country to host the World Cup three times adds to the significance of the occasion. The match schedule, without group assignments, was announced on February 4, 2024, and the full schedule was unveiled on December 6, 2025, the day after the draw.

Reader's Guide

Mexico City proper had a population of 9,209,944 and a land area of 1,495 square kilometers (577 square miles) according to the 2020 census, making it Mexico's primate city and the second-largest Spanish-speaking city proper in the world after Lima. Under the most recent definition agreed upon by the federal and state governments, Greater Mexico City had a population of 21,804,515, making it the world's 15th-largest metropolitan area and the second-largest urban agglomeration in the Western Hemisphere, after São Paulo. In 2011, Greater Mexico City had a GDP of $411 billion, making it one of the world's most productive urban areas. The city accounted for 15.8% of Mexico's GDP, while the metropolitan area accounted for about 22%.

Did You Know?

• Mexico City is the oldest capital city in the Americas and one of only two founded by Indigenous peoples.
• The city was originally built as Tenochtitlan on an island in Lake Texcoco around 1325.
• Mexico City is divided into 16 boroughs, or alcaldías, which are further subdivided into neighborhoods, or colonias.
• The informal demonym for Mexico City residents is chilango, though the formal term is capitalinos.