dpJulian Quinones was beyond the last Ecuador defender.
Despite that, the Mexican winger wasn’t called offside.
Half a field later, Quinones had tucked away the match’s first goal for a 1-0 Mexico lead at home in Mexico City.
There were plenty of questions about offside, but the officials got this rule right.
MORE: The greatest goal in Canada men’s soccer history
Why wasn’t Julian Quinones called offside for Mexico vs. Ecuador before goal?
The key is where Quinones was when the ball was played.
A player cannot be called offside in his own half of the field.
In this case, when the leading pass was played to Quinones, he was still on his own side of the halfway line:
What a goal from Julián Quiñones and Mexico 🔥 pic.twitter.com/Oqo9tx2jkr
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) July 1, 2026
MORE: Portugal’s usage of Cristiano Ronaldo makes no sense
There was still a lot of work to do, and it was a great finish.
But this is one of the fascinating loopholes to offside. It essentially prevents the defense from being pushed way high up the field with no punishment.
In this case, Mexico broke out and punished Ecuador.
