Futbol Mundial—Matchday 3 of the 2026 Liga BBVA MX Apertura Tournament treated us to a weekend of intense action, leaving the Rayados de Monterrey with a solid road win in Guadalajara and La Fiera celebrating, at last, their first three points of the season in front of their home fans.
Here’s a recap of the action for Futbol Mundial:
Atlas 0-2 Monterrey: A Nightmare Night and Red Cards for the Rojinegros
Jalisco Stadium was the scene of a hard-fought match where Monterrey demonstrated its dominance and perfectly capitalized on the home team’s mistakes.
The balance quickly tipped in favor of “La Pandilla.” In the 28th minute, a serious lapse in concentration by the Rojinegros’ defense allowed the visitors to string together a dangerous play down the wing; the ball fell perfectly to Diego Rossi, who made no mistake and sent it into the back of the net, silencing the stadium.
In the second half, Atlas pushed forward in an attempt to change the course of the game. In the 66th minute, La Academia threatened with a powerful long-range shot that grazed the post. However, just as the home team was playing better, a lack of discipline proved to be their undoing. In the 71st minute, VAR signaled the referee to review a hard tackle by Duk on Orbelín Pineda, resulting in the first direct red card for the Zorros.
The closing minutes of the match were pure chaos for Atlas. In stoppage time, at the 90+3′ mark, another VAR review led to the ejection of Milton Valenzuela and the awarding of a penalty kick to the visitors. Lucas Ocampos stepped up and, with great composure, converted the penalty in the 90+7′ to seal the final 2-0 score. The home team’s frustration was palpable, as they ended the match with a third red card—this time for Carlos Salcedo—just before the final whistle.
León 1-0 Pachuca: La Fiera Roars at Home and Picks Up Three Points
In the Bajío region, Club León was desperate to make the most of its home-field advantage and snap its losing streak at the start of the tournament. In a fiercely contested match against the Tuzos of Pachuca, the Esmeraldas’ high press paid off before halftime.
In the 41st minute, Tuzos defender Eduardo Bauermann made a costly mistake coming off his line, which Daniel Arcila capitalized on. With great vision, Arcila stole the ball, took on the Pachuca defense, left them in his wake, and finished with class to send the stands into a frenzy and put the score at 1-0.
The outlook darkened completely for Guillermo Almada’s team in the second half. In the 62nd minute, a hard foul by Christian Rivera was reviewed by VAR, resulting in a red card that left Pachuca a man down on the field.
With a numerical advantage, La Fiera controlled the pace of the game. Although they tried every possible way to increase their lead for greater peace of mind, the ball refused to go in for a second time. Despite this, the Esmeralda team managed to close ranks, neutralize any attempt at a comeback by the Hidalgo side, and secure a golden victory—León’s first so far in the 2026 Apertura.
