Mexico Football team players won't be punished after party scandal ahead of World Cup

The Mexican general secretary said it was not up to him to judge the players on their off-field actions.

At least eight members of the Mexico national team are under fire for attending a late-night party before leaving the country to continue its preparation for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. Mexican general secretary Guillermo Cantu chimed in on the scandal and told reporters that the players that attended won't be punished.

The late-night gathering took place the night after the team's friendly win over Scotland, before heading to Denmark for a friendly in Copenhagen. Mexican tabloid magazine TVNotas published photos of various players, including Hector Herrera, and Cantu told reporters that it was pretty much an off day.

"The day was a free day," Cantu said. "That's the risk you take with [giving] freedom. In truth, it's not whether we like [it] or not, simply that we have to be clear that they haven't missed any training or a meet-up."

"The subject of values is separate. I'm not going to condemn the players. It's a personal and free decision of how they can use their time, which was agreed upon a week before the trip [to Denmark]."

Team captain Rafa Marquez approached players at the team hotel before Tuesday's practice to address their responsibilities as role models as members of the national the team, according to John Sutcliffe of ESPN.

Mexico is in Group F with Germany, Sweden, and South Korea. El Tri will open up against Germany on Sunday, June 17th at 11 a.m