Mexico shutters classrooms 40 days early as heat and World Cup reshape school calendar

MEXICO CITY, Mexico (AFP)—Authorities confirmed Friday that pupils across Mexico will finish classes 40 days ahead of the usual timetable while the nation stages World Cup games, a move that has stirred angry reactions nationwide.

Education Secretary Mario Delgado attributed the revision partly to severe heat across parts of the country. “We’re going to end the school year on June 5 because many states are already experiencing high temperatures, and there’s also the issue of the World Cup,” he said at an appearance in the northern state of Sonora. Delgado said planners were also weighing an earlier return for the next term, now fixed for 31 August.

The finals feature co-hosts Mexico, the United States and Canada. Competition starts on 11 June when Mexico faces South Africa at home in Mexico City.

Delgado first floated the idea on Thursday. President Claudia Sheinbaum stressed it remained a “proposal.” “There is no definitive calendar yet,” she said at her daily press conference. “It’s important that the children don’t miss classes either.”

Parents voiced shock, fearing they must secure—and fund—another full month of holiday care.

“Moving up the end of the school year will affect more than 23.4 million students by further reducing learning time, amid existing educational underachievement and growing inequalities,” warned Mexico Evalua, a think tank focused on public policy.

Trade group Coparmex branded the policy “hasty,” predicting knotted family timetables and knock-on effects on jobs.