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Gilberto Mora is set to become the youngest player in Mexico national team history to wear El Tri's iconic No. 10 jersey.
According to TUDN, the 17-year-old prodigy will trade the No. 19 shirt he wore during the 2026 World Cup for the storied No. 10. The jersey previously belonged to the currently sidelined Alexis Vega, who carried the number for El Tri across the two most recent World Cups.
As Mexico enters a new chapter under incoming manager Rafael Márquez, Mora will unveil his new shirt number during the fall international window. The expectation is that the young star retains the number permanently as the 2030 World Cup cycle gets underway.
The teenager began wearing the No. 10 at club level with Liga MX outfit Tijuana this summer. Now, the youngest player in El Tri's World Cup history and the youngest player in soccer history to claim a senior international trophy will take yet another stride as the face of Mexican soccer's future.
Wearing El Tri's No. 10 is a distinction reserved for some of the finest players in Mexico national team history.
Iconic Players Who Wore No. 10 for Mexico
Mexico boast a storied tradition of players who have donned the celebrated No. 10. Gifted playmakers, prolific goalscorers and trailblazers of the sport in the country have made it the most prestigious shirt number—as is the case worldwide—that a player can wear for the national side.
Tomás Balcázar, now more widely recognized as Javier "Chicharito" Hernández's grandfather, was the first Mexican to wear the number at the 1954 World Cup and, much like his grandson would 56 years later, he found the net against France.
One of the greatest figures in Liga MX and among the finest playmakers in Mexican soccer history, Tomás Boy carried the weight of the No. 10 shirt at the 1986 World Cup—Mexico's finest tournament until 2026. Through the 1990s, the number belonged to striker Luis García, who still shares the record for most goals by a Mexico international in their debut European season, netting 20 times for Atlético Madrid in 1992–93.
Yet the greatest Mexican player ever to wear the No. 10 remains the legendary Cuauhtémoc Blanco. The Club América icon was a quintessential attacking midfielder and is widely regarded as the most gifted player in El Tri's history. He wore the number across three separate World Cups, scoring in each one.
Mora will join this exclusive group of El Tri legends, aiming to match or even exceed their achievements. That said, not every player has been able to shoulder the weight of such a storied number, and Mora will need to work diligently to ensure recent history does not repeat itself.
Mora Must Withstand Pressure Others Haven't Survived
It was former U-17 World Cup winner and Barcelona academy product Giovani Dos Santos who took on Mexico's No. 10 shirt in 2010. Much like Mora, Dos Santos was viewed as the future of Mexican soccer, a player talented enough to elevate El Tri to new heights.
However, Dos Santos never lived up to the towering expectations set for him from an early age. He became a journeyman at club level and only produced fleeting moments of brilliance during his time wearing No. 10 for El Tri, which spanned two World Cups. There is a widespread feeling that Dos Santos never truly fulfilled his potential, weighed down by the burden of expectation.
Vega has been El Tri's No. 10 in recent major competitions, yet he was never able to replicate the form that saw him guide Toluca to back-to-back Liga MX titles on the international stage. He too frequently appeared unable to deliver when the spotlight shone brightest.
It will fall to Mora to manage the pressure and expectations that accompany his new shirt number, as there are extraordinarily high hopes resting on his young shoulders. Mexico's No. 10 carries the responsibility to perform when it matters most, and being a teenager will not serve as an acceptable excuse for underwhelming displays.
Nevertheless, there is little to suggest Mora is unprepared for the challenge. On the contrary, he continues to grow with every match and already merits the honor of being Mexico's new No. 10—just ask his former manager, Javier Aguirre.
"Gil is a 'crack,'" Aguirre said, singing Mora's praises. "He's a player, a kid, that will surely leave Mexico before long because he deserves to move to Europe and a big club. He'll do it, no doubt. Who better than him to wear the No. 10? There is no one else."