After scoring the first goal, and then going into halftime tied, the United States soccer team lost 2-1 to Mexico. This loss continued the winless streak the U.S. went into the game with against Mexico.

ESPN.com Recap

Today’s fact is found on History.com

The three colors of Mexico’s flag hold deep significance for the country and its citizens: green represents hope and victory, white stands for the purity of Mexican ideals and red brings to mind the blood shed by the nation’s heroes.

The flag’s dramatic emblem is based on the legend of how the Mexicas (or Aztecs) traveled from Aztlán to find the place where they could establish their empire. The god Huitzilopochtli advised them that a sign—an eagle devouring a serpent atop a Nopal cactus—would appear to them at the exact spot where they should begin construction. On a small island in the middle of a lake, the Mexicas came upon the scene exactly as Huitzilopochtli had described it. They immediately settled there and founded the city of Tenochtitlán, which is now Mexico City, the country’s capital.

Who: United States vs. Mexico
What: CONCACAF World Cup 2010 Qualifying
When: Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2009, 3 p.m. EST
Where: Estadio Azteca; Mexico City, Mexico

It’s a World Cup qualifier, and all hands will be on deck. The national team has just two days of preparation — Monday and Tuesday — before the match Wednesday afternoon at what will be a packed Azteca Stadium. Read the full story

This is a topic I wish was brought up a little more often in the mainstream media for serious debate. The violence and kidnappings that take place around the U.S./Mexico border is becoming alarming.

5 bodies, 1 headless, found in Ciudad Juarez

MEXICO CITY — Five bodies, one of them headless, were found in a van in the border city of Ciudad Juarez.

The grisly find came Wednesday, a day when a prominent U.S. senator blocked some aid to Mexico over alleged human rights violations by soldiers and police fighting violent drug cartels. Read the full story

Report: Leahy blocks report on Mexico human rights

WASHINGTON — A Democratic senator blocked the release of a favorable State Department report on Mexico’s human rights record, The Washington Post reported today.

Sen. Patrick Leahy’s action delays the release of $100 million in U.S. aid meant to help Mexico combat drug traffickers. The Merida Initiative, a $1.4 billion, three-year package, requires Congress to withhold some of the funding unless the State Department reports that Mexico is not violating human rights while prosecuting the drug war, the Post reported.