EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – A year and a half after getting her first call-up to Mexico Women’s Youth national soccer team, El Paso soccer star-in-the-making, Chloe Del Real, now has a youth World Cup appearance under her belt.
Del Real, 17, played in the 2025 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup held in Morocco last month, representing Mexico’s Under-17 squad. The Mexican team made a deep run in the tournament, finishing in third place and winning a bronze medal.
“Each game had its own difficulties. It was very fun playing against all the different teams around the world. It’s all different playing styles,” Del Real said. “I don’t think there’s words to describe the feeling of realizing you’re the third-best team in the whole entire world. I was proud to be able to represent my country and show the world who Mexico is. Everyone’s showcasing their individual talents, as well as their team talent. I think we had such a united group, and that’s what really helped us win.”
Mexico won two out of its three group stage matches and advanced to the Round of 16 as the second place out of four teams in group B, behind the eventual World Cup winners North Korea. They subsequently beat Paraguay and Italy in the knockout rounds, before losing 1-0 to the Netherlands in the semifinals. They then beat Brazil in a penalty shootout in the march for third place.
Del Real was a key component of Mexico’s squad during its group stage matches before an injury kept her out of the knockout rounds.
She was on the field for 177 minutes out of approximately 273 minutes played in the group stage matchups. She was subbed in at halftime for the first two games, and was in the starting lineup the third game, in which she played for about 86 minutes before being subbed out…