What Is Diego Luna's Nationality, Ethnicity & Religion? Is He Mexican?
Diego Luna has become one of the top stars of the USMNT this summer at the Gold Cup and has put a strong case for himself to be part of the World Cup next year.
Advertisement
Luna's creativity on the pitch has amazed U.S. soccer fans. His biggest competitive USMNT test comes on Sunday in the Gold Cup Final against the regional rivals, Mexico.
What some fans may not know is that there is a connection between Luna and Mexico. Luna will be playing against a Mexico side who are looking to go back-to-back in the Gold Cup, having won the tournament in 2023.
The USMNT has not won the tournament since 2021 and is looking to win its eighth Gold Cup in its history.
Diego Luna's Background
Diego Luna is of Mexican descent and was born in Sunnyvale, California. Both of Luna's parents are of Mexican descent.
Advertisement
Luna was eligible to represent Mexico through his parents. His religion is unknown as that information has not been shared publicly. Luna considers himself a Mexican-American and was open to joining the Mexican national team in the past.
Just last summer, Luna spoke about not closing the doors of representing the Mexican national team after not making the final roster of the Summer Olympics USMNT.
Luna even rejected the opportunity to be an alternative option for the U.S. Olympic roster to focus on Real Salt Lake and look at his options on the international level.
In an interview with ESPN, Luna expressed his position on choosing the right national team to represent.
Diego Luna: "I've never closed down any doors. For me, it's continuing to perform and who's going to give me the best opportunity. I know there's some changes going on at the Mexican Football Federation, U.S. Soccer, too, but there are some big changes going on, so we'll see what happens there."
Advertisement
Why Diego Luna chose the USMNT over Mexico
Despite the interest in representing the Mexican national team, Luna decided to represent the USMNT after earning a call-up to the senior team for the first time in January 2024.
Luna started gaining more consistency with the USMNT since the start of 2025 when Pochettino called him up for friendlies against Venezuela and Costa Rica in January.
Luna never represented Mexico at the youth international level but did represent the U-20 and U-23 USMNT.
In an interview with Brian Sciaretta in 2022, Luna explained why he chose to represent the USMNT over Mexico, and despite a near switch to Mexico last year, he stuck with his decision to play for Team USA.
Diego Luna: "The rivalry [Mexico vs USA] is a big thing, and I would always have my USA jersey on [when he was younger]... I have respect, and I love Mexico and I love being Mexican, but I grew up in the United States... Ever since I was born here in the US, I was raised here. It gave me what I have now. It got me to where I'm at now. I was born and raised in the United States, so it's only right to play for the country that they raised me to who I am.'
Advertisement
Related: The Hidden Meaning Behind Every Diego Luna Tattoo
Related: Donovan Calls Out Olympic Coach After Diego Luna Brace
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


USA Today
15 minutes ago
- USA Today
How did Mexico get away with a handball penalty vs. USMNT in Gold Cup final?
The U.S. men's national team made a run to the Gold Cup final on Sunday despite not having its best squad available. But that won't have head coach Mauricio Pochettino feeling any better about the 2-1 loss to rival Mexico. And one no-call, in particular, will haunt the USMNT into months ahead. With the match tied a 1-1 in the second half, the USMNT's Max Arfsten took on Mexico's Jorge Sánchez and Roberto Alvarado in the box. Sánchez was able to make a play on the ball, dispossessing Arfsten with his left foot. But as Sánchez tried to brace himself, his entire left hand landed right on the ball. Again, this was in the box, but no penalty was awarded to the USMNT. Why wasn't a handball called? Referee Mario Escobar of Guatemala did not call a handball, and the play didn't even go into an extended VAR review at the monitor. Escobar was relying on the IFAB's Laws of the Game, allowing players freedom to brace falls and support themselves naturally without risking a handball. The argument behind that rule is that it's natural for players to brace themselves and they shouldn't be at fault if a fall so happens to make contact with the ball. After all, if it's unavoidable, there shouldn't be a penalty. But that exception still has nuance, and the player's intent or ability to avoid the ball is still taken into account. That's where you would have liked to at least see a VAR review on this play because Sánchez was looking at the ball the whole way and stopped the ball with his hand. The ruling of no handball may have been upheld, but that's the kind of pivotal call you want the head referee to be making at the monitor. What did Pochettino say about the no-call? The USMNT head coach was justifiably upset that his team didn't get awarded a penalty. He claimed if roles were reversed and it was a USMNT player falling on the ball like that, we would have seen a different result. "The truth was that if that happened in the opposite half, in the other box, for sure it's a penalty. The player was with a knee on the floor, he pushed the hand over the ball. It's not that the hand was [already] on the floor, and the ball touched. "For me, it was embarrassing to see that situation and it's a shame. I understand that maybe 70,000 people [in the crowd], you know, giving this penalty, it's not easy." He's probably right too. VAR exists for moments like that, and it wasn't deployed correctly at all.


Washington Post
16 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Sports betting roundup: Betting favorite Mexico beats US in Gold Cup soccer final
The betting favorites won the CONCACAF Gold Cup on a holiday weekend with plenty of baseball action. The Mexican national soccer team beat the United States 2-1 in the final on Sunday night in Houston. Mexico went into the match favored at +150 at the BetMGM online sportsbook , while the American team was +210. A tie was listed at +185.

Associated Press
39 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Dennis Georgatos, a longtime sports writer for the AP and San Jose Mercury News, dies at age 70
LODI, Calif. (AP) — Dennis Georgatos, a longtime sports writer for The Associated Press and the San Jose Mercury News and author of multiple books on the San Francisco 49ers, has died at age 70. Georgatos died on June 25 following a battle with brain cancer, his family said. He spent his final weeks at his vineyard near Lodi, California, as he visited with family and friends. Known both for his congeniality and his wit, Georgatos spent more than four decades as a reporter, working up until his cancer diagnosis in November. He covered sports in California for nearly three decades and spent another 17 years covering Colorado's professional and college teams. Georgatos graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with an English degree — political science was a passion, too — before pursuing his Master's in journalism at Cal State Northridge. He began his journalism career at United Press International in Los Angeles before joining The Associated Press. After a decade in San Diego, he moved to San Francisco for an expanded sports role. Around 2000, he joined the San Jose Mercury News as their 49ers beat writer, a job that lasted until layoffs at the newspaper in 2008. Georgatos wrote several books on the 49ers, including 'Stadium Stories: San Francisco 49ers,' and 'Game of My Life San Francisco 49ers: Memorable Stories of 49ers Football.' While recovering from brain surgery, he regaled visitors with his reflections on interviews he had with sports greats such as Steve Young, Al Davis, Tony Gwynn and Barry Bonds. Georgatos grew close to Brandon Crawford's family through his son, Daniel, who played sports with the former San Francisco star shortstop growing up. Georgatos was an invited guest when the Giants held 'Brandon Crawford Day' on April 26. Georgatos spent the last 17 years of his career as a sports freelancer for the AP in Colorado, where he covered the Broncos, Rockies, Avalanche, Nuggets, the University of Colorado, Colorado State and Air Force athletics, among other assignments. 'The only thing Dennis loved as much as his family and friends was his time covering sports — any sports,' said Tina Susman, who forged a lifelong friendship with Georgatos after working with him at the AP bureau in San Diego. 'He never lost his love of the game or his loyalty toward AP for giving him the chance to cover events.' While living in Denver, Georgatos bought and operated Melita's, a popular downtown Greek restaurant, for several years. His Greek heritage was important to Georgatos, who was born on the island of Kefalonia. He, his brother, Dean, and parents, Jerry and Helen, immigrated to the United States after the devastation caused by the Great Ionian Earthquake of 1953. Georgatos attended Amador Valley High School in Pleasanton, California, where he was a two-way football standout. Georgatos is survived by three sons — Gregory Georgatos of Rocklin, California; Daniel Georgatos of San Jose; and Cole Schafer of Littleton, Colorado. A celebration of life for Georgatos will be held on July 27 at Pastas Trattoria in Pleasanton. ___ AP college sports: