Merlin the – A 2-year-old duck named Merlin has become Mexico City’s unlikely World Cup sensation, waddling through busy streets in an El Tri jersey and drawing crowds after Mexico’s June 11 win.
For a couple of hours on a busy Mexico City street, the usual rhythm of World Cup fans gets interrupted by a different kind of celebration: a duck in an El Tri jersey, waddling like it’s headed to the stadium.
Merlin is a 2-year-old domesticated duck who has gone viral as Mexico’s biggest fan during the World Cup. Wearing a Mexico FIFA World Cup jersey and custom socks, Merlin draws attention with his quacks while moving through the city streets—part pet, part street-corner spectacle.
The duck’s first burst of attention came after Mexico won its opening game against South Africa on June 11. As fans gathered to celebrate the victory, Merlin ended up in the middle of the day’s noise too, and the charm of a duck cheering for El Tri quickly spread online.
Merlin’s owner, Karla Gomez, keeps the scene grounded in everyday life. Gomez is a beverage street merchant in Mexico City. and she told Reuters that she typically sells drinks with her son Christian and Merlin. Up until recently. Gomez said Merlin hadn’t gained much attention—until the World Cup brought a new kind of spotlight.
“For us it has been a surprise, truly,” Gomez said. “The fact that Merlin is the unofficial mascot of the World Cup … we feel very pleased about such a situation and above all that people love my duck.”
When the World Cup excitement hits peak intensity again, Merlin is already showing which side he’s on. In an effort to get him involved, Mexico and South Korea flags were placed before the duck. Merlin selected Mexico as his favorite.
That matters because Mexico’s next World Cup game is close. The team plays South Korea in Guadalajara, Mexico, at 9 p.m. ET on Thursday, June 18.
Between a jersey-sized fandom and a street vendor’s ordinary day, Merlin has become the kind of viral story people actually want to talk about—because the next match is already here, and in Mexico City, it sounds like Merlin will be there in spirit long before kickoff.
Merlin the duck Mexico City World Cup superfan El Tri Mexico vs South Korea June 18 Reuters
Why is a duck wearing a jersey more hype than half the players?
I saw this on TikTok, like isn’t it weird that they just let the duck roam on busy streets though? Also El Tri to the top!
So the duck picked Mexico because the flags were there… but like did they bribe him? If he picked South Korea next then it would’ve been a totally different story. World Cup fans will believe anything.
The owner sells drinks with her son and the duck, and now he’s the mascot? Honestly I love it but also can’t stop thinking about how they don’t mention if he’s getting enough water or if the socks are comfy. Still, Mexico fans are wild for this duck, and now I kinda want him to be at the next match in Guadalajara or at least be the luck charm.