CARSON, Calif. – The United States has been dominant over Mexico in World Cup qualifying matches held in Columbus, Ohio, and that success is owed to the "author" of the "Dos a Cero" rivalry, LA Galaxy head coach and general manager Bruce Arena.
It was during Arena’s tenure as national team coach that the USMNT first hosted Mexico in central Ohio back in 2001 when the Americans earned their first of four consecutive 2-0 victories over El Tri. On Friday, the Americans will host Mexico for a fifth time with El Tri determined to break the USMNT’s string of success.
Before 2001, the Americans had historically struggled in home World Cup qualifiers against the Mexico squad, but Arena had an answer.
“U.S. Soccer wanted to play in the L.A. Coliseum, and I wanted to play in Columbus. Those were the discussions. It was a fight, but over time, they agreed to forfeit gate revenue to actually try and win a home World Cup qualifying game.”
As for why he ended up selecting Columbus, Arena admits that there wasn’t anything special about the venue, but the frigid temperatures in central Ohio offered the USMNT an edge.
“It wasn’t a place that the Mexican team would like to play in. I wanted a venue that would give us an advantage,” Arena said. “I didn’t envision that it would still be the venue in 2016…but it’s worked out pretty well.
“I am the author (of Dos a Cero), but I probably won’t get the credit for it, and if they lose, I’ll probably get the blame. Who knows.”
