Mexico's Secretary of Tourism, Josefina Rodríguez Zamora, who has been in the post for just over a month, highlighted in London the importance for the sector of the World Cup-2026 soccer tournament, to be organized by her country together with the United States and Canada.

"The World Cup is very important. We are already working with FIFA on tourism issues. To give visibility to the states that, despite not being World Cup venues, have the focus and that allows visitors (to the event) to be distributed from north to south," said the secretary, who is attending the World Travel Market tourism fair in London, to AFP.

The Latin American country will have three host cities for this sporting event, which will be held from June 11 to July 19, 2026: Mexico City, where the opening game of the tournament will be played, Guadalajara and Monterrey.

With almost half a million visitors in 2023, the United Kingdom is Mexico's fourth largest tourism market, behind the United States, Canada, and Colombia. The head of tourism is making her first official trip to this fair, one of the most important in the world in the sector, after being appointed by the new government of Claudia Sheinbaum.

Mexico City, Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, and Merida are the four main destinations for British tourists in Mexico.

"The London fair allows us to showcase products such as the Mayan train, which are new, allowing this community tourism and tour operators to have new experiences, which greatly enriches Mexico's offer," said Josefina Rodriguez Zamora.

Sixth most visited country

According to the World Tourism Organization, Mexico is the sixth most visited country in the world, with some 42.2 million travelers, and this activity contributes 8.5% to GDP.

"The great challenge in this six-year term is to work to raise that position," said the Secretary of Tourism, who at 35 is the youngest member of her country's government.

According to figures from Sectur, the Mexican Ministry of Tourism, 29 million international tourist arrivals were recorded in the first eight months of the year, an increase of 5.5% over 2023.

"We are looking for more actions for the markets we already have, to have a greater consolidation in them and to look for emerging markets, with new policies such as sports tourism," added Josefina Rodríguez Zamora.

The Secretary of Tourism held several business meetings at the fair, which is being held in London between Tuesday and Thursday, to promote her country.

"Tourism in Mexico is in very good health because we are in a great moment of market diversification," he explained.

"Mexico stands out for the quality of its people, the history we have. In every magical town, in every corner, there is something to know, there is something to experience, there is something to taste above all," he concluded.

© Agence France-Presse By Pablo SAN ROMAN