Cavalry in Mexico City: How Calgary’s soccer side can advance in 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup​on February 11, 2025 at 3:50 pm

An encore would be something very special. Up a goal on Pumas UNAM in the first-round set of the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup, another win for Cavalry FC over the Mexico giant would be a stunner.

Especially since it would take place in one of North America’s most remarkable stadiums in footie-crazed Mexico City.

“They’re ruthless there,” said Cavalry veteran Charlie Trafford ahead of Thursday’s rematch at Estadio Olímpico Universitario (6 p.m. MT, OneSoccer, OneSoccer.ca). “And it’s not just the stadium.

“If we’re not woken up at two in the morning to sirens outside of our hotel, I’ll be disappointed,” continued Trafford. “They’ll do everything they can and they have to do to win. And I think us as sportsmen — like the Canadians we are — it’s something we almost can’t fathom. And so it’ll be a pretty kind of eye-opening experience to go down there and really get to feel what it’s like to get put under that kind of pressure and ruthlessness.

“But it’ll be a cool experience for us.”

Good thing Cavalry only needs a tie in the set’s second leg to advance in the 27-team tournament of North American champions, thanks to its 2-1 shocking triumph last Thursday at Vancouver Island’s Starlight Stadium in Langford, B.C.

But victory in the home of the 1968 Summer Olympic Games against one of Mexico’s big four Liga MX clubs?

That would be ‘excelente …

‘Muy excelente.’

The matchup with the Mexican side is a two-game, total-goal set.

That means whichever team scores the most goals over the course of the home-and-home first-round affair is the victor and moves on to play in the competition’s Round of 16 versus Costa Rica’s LD Alajuelense, which earned a bye through the first round by winning the 2024 Concacaf Central American Cup.

If the teams match goal totals over the two games, then the tiebreaker is the most away goals scored.

With that in mind, here’s the breakdown of which club advances after regulation time Thursday:
• A Cavalry win equals a series victory for Cavalry
• Any draw equals a series victory for Cavalry
• A 1-0 loss to Pumas equals a series victory for Pumas
• A 2-1 loss to Pumas ignites extra time and a penalty-kick shootout
• Any other one-goal loss equals a series victory for Cavalry
• Any loss by more than one goal to Pumas equals a series victory for Pumas