Five times Mexico have medaled at IFAF flag football events, but still a coveted gold medal eludes the men’s national team.

For the past three years, Mexico have stood on the proverbial podium with silver at the 2021 World Championships, bronze at the World Games in 2022 and silver at the Americas continental championships last summer. Throw in a world championship silver in 2014 and a third-place finish in 2014, plus fourth in 2012 and 2018, and Mexico’s consistency is evident. But that coveted crown has proven elusive.

The path to redemption begins in Lahti for the world’s second-ranked team with intriguing Group B match ups against Australia, Chile and newcomers Cameroon.

Mexico put up 44 unanswered points against Chile when they last met in the continentals 12 months ago, but all other games in Group B will be the first meetings between the four nations.

Australia’s international debut and foray into the unknown produced a fourth-place finish at last year’s Asia-Oceania tournament. They closed out the opening day in Malaysia as top scorers with 88 total points and conceded only one touchdown and finished with a 4-1 record, their only loss a 20-12 reverse against unbeaten Japan.

Eventual goal medalists Thailand proved too strong in the semifinals and Japan claimed the bronze medal, but Australia left Malaysia knowing they have set the foundations to challenge when the world converges on Finland this summer.

The ultimate unknown quantity heading to Lahti, is Cameroon, a nation that will make history by becoming Africa’s first representative at an IFAF world championship in any discipline. Their first challenge will be to finish in the top two places in Group B in order to advance to the Round of 16 playoffs.

At the club level, the Yaounde Lions recently won the 2024 Champions of the Cameroon Championship Cup Final with IFAF President Pierre Trochet in attendance.