England superfan who witnessed Hand of God returns to Azteca for 2026 World Cup

Peter Robinson was inside the Azteca stadium on 22 June 1986 when Diego Maradona punched the ball into the net and then produced what would become known as the Goal of the Century, eliminating England from the World Cup in front of 114,580 spectators. Forty years on, the 69-year-old Sunderland supporter is back at the same venue, attending his eleventh World Cup as England prepare to face Mexico.

Robinson, a retired British Airways ramp worker from Hayes, Middlesex, described the 1986 quarter-final as his favourite World Cup match of all time, despite the result. “I’ve been to eleven World Cups and that was probably my favourite, especially as we had tickets to every England game,” he said.

His memories of that day paint a vivid picture of a different era in international football. “I remember there were even tanks outside the ground,” he recalled. “But after the game the Mexican police gave hundreds of England fans return lifts into the city in the back of official police pick-up trucks. I jumped in one. There were no seat belts or health and safety issues back then.”

The match came just four years after the Falklands War, yet Robinson remembers the local crowd being largely sympathetic to England. “Most of the Mexicans were actually supporting England that day. I’m not sure if they had some sort of rivalry with the Argentinians. They were very friendly.” He estimates around 4,000 England supporters were present, with the majority of the stadium filled by Argentine fans.

England had also played at the Azteca four days earlier, beating Paraguay 3-0. The squad and travelling fans were based in Acapulco rather than Mexico City because a devastating earthquake six months prior had left families living on the streets of the capital.

Robinson also recalled the moment Maradona’s first goal was scored. “We didn’t even know it was handball until we got back to the hotel after the game — we assumed it was a header.”

Looking ahead to Sunday’s fixture, Robinson urged England supporters to brace themselves for a hostile atmosphere. More than one million Mexico fans took to the streets of Mexico City earlier this week to celebrate their victory over Ecuador, a night that tragically resulted in four deaths.

“The passion of the Mexico fans is incredible,” Robinson said. “It will be different on Sunday.” He added that he believes England can reach the quarter-finals or semi-finals, and noted that VAR should prevent any repeat of the controversies that defined the 1986 encounter.