The NFL is back in Mexico City. The Minnesota Vikings visit the San Francisco 49ers at Estadio Banorte on Sunday 22 November 2026, with kickoff at 19:20 local. It is the first NFL game at the stadium since its World Cup renovation works, in the renovated Azteca itself.
An evening kickoff shapes the whole trip, and this is not a quiet weekend: Corona Capital runs from Friday to Sunday, in the Revolution Day holiday period. Flights and rooms are the ones to book first. This post covers the game, the ride in, where to stay, and the plan home after a late finish.
What is happening
The league’s Mexico games have always drawn a traveling crowd, and this one adds a homecoming angle for the stadium itself, so expect a genuine US fan surge that weekend. Estadio Banorte, the renovated Azteca, hosts its first NFL game since the World Cup renovation works.
Kickoff is at 19:20, in the evening: a slow morning, a long build up, and a late finish. Arrive with time in hand, soak up the build up outside, and stay for the whole game rather than racing the crowd to the exits.
The exit is the slow part of any big stadium night, doubly so in a new city. A 19:20 start means a late exit with tens of thousands of other fans, and the calm move is to settle the ride home while everyone else is still celebrating. Agree it before kickoff.
It is also the second half of a double header weekend, with Corona Capital at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez from Friday to Sunday. Flying home on the Monday is a gift rather than a rush: Sunday night football, a slow Monday morning, and an airport run in daylight. Flying in for one game, add a day if you can.
Getting there after you land
Fly into Benito Juárez International, MEX, about 13 km east of the Zócalo, with two terminals, T1 and T2, linked by a free shuttle and the Aerotrén. Felipe Ángeles, NLU, is a different airport 50 km north, and none of these times apply to it. Metrobús Line 4 boards at both terminals; Metro Line 5 boards at Terminal Aérea station by T1.
Metrobús Line 4
The value pick: direct from both terminals in dedicated lanes, with room for luggage.
Metro Line 5Cheapest
The cheapest ride in the city, from Terminal Aérea station by Terminal 1. Needs a transfer; tough with big luggage.
Uber / DiDi
Usually the cheapest door to door option, price locked in the app, DiDi often a little cheaper. Pick up at the designated zones.
Authorized airport taxiFastest
Fixed by zone and printed at the booth inside arrivals. Pay at the counter, never to a tout.
Staying near the city’s main transport corridors makes the stadium run and the late return simpler. The airport end offers four rides, from a $5 MXN Metro fare to a fixed zone taxi. Every option, priced and compared, is in our MEX to Mexico City center guide
The full first hour: Mexico City guide
The ride in, the first ticket and the first tacos, plus where to stay and how to take the altitude gently.
Where to stay, and getting back
The guide’s three picks all sit in the Centro Histórico, on the Metrobús Line 4 run from the airport. The Splurge pick is the Gran Hotel Ciudad de México, at 16 de Septiembre 82, right on the Zócalo: an Art Nouveau landmark with a Tiffany stained glass ceiling. The Mid-range pick is Hotel Histórico Central, at Simón Bolívar 28, a colonial era mansion known for its 24 hour café.
The Budget pick is Hostal Amigo, at Isabel la Católica 61-A, with dorms and private rooms and a free breakfast buffet. Book early: the festival and the football land together, in a holiday period. Getting back is the part to settle in advance: the Metrobús runs about 04:30 to 00:00, and after midnight a pre-booked pickup beats the taxi queue.
The first hour, sorted
Start with the card. The Tarjeta de Movilidad Integrada costs $15 MXN from the station machines and works on the Metro, the Metrobús and the Cablebús: $5 MXN flat on the Metro, $30 MXN on the Metrobús. Sort data before you leave the terminal: install an Airalo eSIM for Mexico before you fly and land already online.
Money next: use an ATM inside the terminal for your first pesos, decline the conversion offer, and keep small bills separate, because markets, street stalls and many taquerías are cash only. Then eat properly. An evening kickoff leaves the morning open, and the classic first meal is breakfast at El Cardenal, at Calle Palma 23, an institution since 1969: hot chocolate whisked at the table, warm conchas with nata, and chilaquiles done properly. Arrive before 9am on weekends to skip the queue.
Take the arrival day gently. The city sits at 2,240 meters, so walk the Zócalo and Calle Madero to the Palacio de Bellas Artes as the light fades.
Our events calendar shows what else is running while you are there, Corona Capital included, and the plan your trip page lines up flights and stays. Book both early for this one.
The days around the game: jacaranda in bloom, Teotihuacán and the Xochimilco canals.
Get the Mexico City first hour checklist by email
The ride in, the first ticket and the first meal, in the Mexico City guide PDF you can read on the plane.
The checklist, free, from After You Land.
What else is on
The events calendar tracks every guided city, strikes and stoppages included.
Events calendarLine up the rest
Plan your trip pulls the guide, the stays and the bookings for this trip into one place.
Plan your trip