A YouTuber walks into Mexico's World Cup training base, hands every player a Rolex worth between $30,000 and $90,000, and explains he's done it because he bet $2 million on them to beat Ecuador. Mexico won 2-0. Then they gave the watches back.
Stephen Deleonardis — known online as Stevewilldoit, with over 1.5 million YouTube subscribers — presented the collection to the entire squad in the build-up to their last-32 tie against Ecuador, claiming the total value hit $1 million. His logic was straightforward: the watches were essentially funded by the winnings he expected from his $2m bet, which he said would return a $1m profit.
Mexico obliged on the pitch. Then, in a statement posted to official team channels, they confirmed the squad had agreed by "mutual agreement" to return the gifts — noting they had been offered "on his own initiative."
FIFA's rules left Mexico with no real choice
This wasn't just a PR decision. Article 21 of FIFA's Code of Ethics is explicit: gifts are prohibited unless they carry "symbolic or trivial value." A $30,000 Rolex is many things. Trivial isn't one of them.
Crucially, FIFA also prohibits gifts that could "create a conflict of interest" or influence those bound by the code. The fact that Deleonardis had $2 million riding on the result — and directly told the players so — is exactly the kind of entanglement the rule is designed to prevent. Violations carry a fine of at least 10,000 Swiss Franc ($12,500) and up to a two-year ban from football-related activity. Mexico's governing body clearly decided no watch was worth that exposure.
Whether anything formal comes of it from FIFA's side is another question. The watches are back. Mexico moved on quickly.
El Tri are through and unbeaten
On the field, Mexico have looked like genuine co-host contenders. Four wins from four, zero goals conceded. They meet England in the last 16 at the Azteca Stadium on Sunday — a venue that carries its own considerable history against the English.
Given that form, Mexico's odds to go deep in this tournament deserve serious attention. A defense that hasn't been breached yet, playing at home, against an England side that has not always looked convincing in this competition. The Azteca watches don't need to be Rolexes to know the time on that one.
