Rivera backs Panama before final World Cup group-stage match

Telemundo Deportes posted a clip of Mariano Rivera sending a message to Panama before its final Group L match against England, giving the squad a boost from one of the country’s most recognizable figures outside football. The former New York Yankees closer, the only player ever elected unanimously to the Baseball Hall of Fame, brought a symbolic weight that reached beyond sport.

Panama had already been eliminated from the 2026 World Cup after losing 1-0 to Croatia on June 23, 2026, and the Federación Panameña de Fútbol said the team would try to finish “con la frente en alto” against England on Saturday, June 27, at the New York/New Jersey Stadium. FIFA has placed England, Croatia, Ghana and Panama in Group L at the first men’s World Cup with 48 teams, a tournament running from June 11 to July 19, 2026.

The Panamanian squad was announced on May 26, 2026, with FIFA noting that many of the same names that reached Russia 2018 returned for this cycle. That continuity has been central to the team’s identity, from captain Aníbal Godoy, who has been cited in previous coverage as Panama’s record holder with 157 international appearances, to established figures such as Cecilio Waterman, Adalberto Carrasquilla, José Córdoba, Édgar Yoel Bárcenas and José Fajardo.

Rivera’s intervention matters because Panama has long drawn strength from icons who can speak across sporting lines. His background in Major League Baseball, especially with the Yankees, gives him rare standing in a country trying to turn its final group game into a statement of resilience rather than a simple formality.

England and Panama had met only once before in a World Cup, in Russia 2018, when England won 6-1, still its largest victory in the tournament. That history sharpened the backdrop for the rematch, with Panama looking to close out its campaign under the gaze of a national hero whose message carried well beyond the baseball diamond.