Mexico City's Losers Cafe offers free drinks and dry napkins to World Cup's heartbroken fans

A coffee shop in Mexico City has quietly become one of the more inventive sideshows of the 2026 World Cup, transforming itself into a sanctuary for supporters whose teams have already packed their bags and gone home.

The Losers Cafe operates out of what is normally Compay Cafe, a neighbourhood spot in the cosmopolitan Condesa district run by Ian Infante, a 38-year-old Venezuelan immigrant who built his business up from a street stall. Each morning, small flags representing the tournament’s latest casualties are raised at the entrance. Walk in wearing the shirt of a defeated nation and a complimentary drink is waiting for you. Even the napkins are in on the joke, printed with the words “dry your tears”.

The concept was developed by Swedish dairy-alternative brand Oatly in partnership with Infante, who said he immediately understood the brief — the project spoke to “the emptiness left by loss”. Getting customers to embrace it, however, took a little persuasion. “People were saying, ‘I’m not a loser,’” Infante recalled. “But once we explained how it works, they understood it and began to enjoy it more, feeling a bit more connected to defeat.”

For Monse Aguilar, a 24-year-old photographer, the cafe provided genuine comfort after South Africa were eliminated with a 1-0 defeat to Canada. “It’s like a hug for the heart after losing,” she said, free drink in hand.

Oatly’s decision to plant the campaign in Mexico City rather than the tournament’s US or Canadian host cities was deliberate. Rocio de la Cuadra Diaz, market developer for Oatly Mexico, pointed to the brand’s growth in Latin America and, more pointedly, to local temperament. “The concept of creating a cafe for losers in Mexico made sense because we almost always lose,” she said.

That self-deprecating logic was tested almost immediately. Mexico’s 1-0 victory over Ecuador on Tuesday — their first knockout-stage win in 40 years — sent the city into celebrations that surrounded the cafe on all sides, with the Ecuadorian flag hanging defiantly in the window. Mexican fans now have their sights set on a last-16 meeting with England on Sunday. Should El Tri fall short, the Losers Cafe will be ready.