Team USA vs. Team Mexico at Survivor Series 2026: Rey Mysterio's Match, Possible Teams and Our Pick

Survivor Series is getting its old soul back. Rey Mysterio has announced Team USA vs. Team Mexico, a traditional five-on-five elimination match, for Survivor Series: WarGames on Saturday, November 28, at Daikin Park in Houston.

It will be the first classic Survivor Series elimination match at the event since 2021. Below is everything we know: what Mysterio said, how the match works, who could be on each team, the history of these flag-against-flag matches, and our early pick.

What Rey Mysterio said

Mysterio revealed the match as a guest on Stephanie McMahon's podcast *What's Your Story?* He said he had talked it through with Raw General Manager Adam Pearce and SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis, and that the three of them are going to "put together something very special."

In his words, it will be "a classic five vs. five Survivor Series match" with Team USA against Team Mexico. When he was asked if he would be one of the five, he did not commit, saying they were "still putting the pieces together."

WWE has not named a single team member yet. Expect the teams to be filled over the next three weeks of Raw, SmackDown and AAA TV.

Why Rey Mysterio is the one announcing it

Mysterio is not just a WWE Hall of Famer here. He has been the on-screen General Manager of Lucha Libre AAA since May 23, 2026, after WWE bought the Mexican promotion in 2025. That makes him the bridge between the two companies, and a Team Mexico built from WWE and AAA luchadores is exactly the kind of match his role was created for.

It also explains the timing. Since the purchase, AAA stars have wrestled on WWE TV, WWE stars have wrestled in Mexico, and AAA titles have been defended on SmackDown. A team match on one of WWE's biggest shows of the year is the biggest platform the partnership has had.

How a traditional Survivor Series match works

• Two teams of five start on the apron, with two wrestlers in the ring at a time and tags in between.
• A wrestler who is pinned, submits, is counted out or is disqualified is eliminated and leaves.
• The match keeps going until everyone on one team is gone. Whoever is left on the winning side is a "survivor," and a lone winner is the "sole survivor."

WarGames replaced these matches as the centerpiece of the show in 2022, and the 2021 Raw vs. SmackDown matches were the last traditional elimination tags at Survivor Series. Bringing one back for the 40th Survivor Series is a nice touch.

Who could be on Team Mexico

Team Mexico is the easier side to picture, because WWE and AAA have more top luchadores together than at any time in history.

• Penta: the most over Mexican star on Raw and the natural captain if Mysterio does not wrestle. He is also in the middle of the Crown Jewel tag title match with Je'Von Evans against The Vision.
• Rey Fénix: the AAA World Cruiserweight Champion and one of the best high-flyers in the world. Putting Penta and Fénix on the same team would give fans a Lucha Brothers moment on a WWE premium event.
• Dragon Lee: he has spent the last few weeks teaming with Penta and Evans against The Vision on Raw, so he is already part of this story.
• Rey Mysterio: if he decides to wrestle, it is his match. He has fought injuries this year, which may be why he would not commit.
• An AAA star: a name like El Hijo del Vikingo, one of the most exciting wrestlers in Mexico, would make the match feel like a real AAA vs. WWE event.

Who could be on Team USA

Team USA has more options than spots, so the real question is who WWE builds the team around.

• Trick Williams: the United States Champion is the obvious captain. A team built around the man holding the United States title makes sense on paper and on TV.
• Bron Breakker and Austin Theory: The Vision have been fighting Penta, Je'Von Evans and Dragon Lee for weeks. Turning that rivalry into Team USA vs. Team Mexico would be the simplest way to carry it past Crown Jewel.
• LA Knight: a former United States Champion who is always ready for a big crowd, and a safe pick to fill the team.
• A surprise fifth: WWE likes a mystery partner in these matches. With John Cena already confirmed for Houston, fans will at least wonder about him, though nothing suggests he is wrestling.

Two names are probably off the board. Carmelo Hayes is part of The 946, who are expected to be in the men's WarGames match against The Bloodline. Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton are busy with each other in a Last Man Standing match at Crown Jewel and will likely need something of their own afterward.

The twists worth watching

• Je'Von Evans: he is Penta's partner at Crown Jewel, but he is American. If he ends up on Team USA, the friendship becomes a storyline.
• Dominik Mysterio: born in San Diego, son of the man running Team Mexico, and a former AAA Mega Champion. Which side he picks, or whether either side wants him, is a story on its own.
• El Grande Americano: the masked "American" luchador is the current AAA Mega Champion after beating Dominik at Héroes Inmortales on October 24. A star called "The Great American" holding Mexico's top title is a gift for this match.

Flag against flag: Survivor Series history

National team matches are part of the event's past, and they have usually come with a big crowd reaction behind them.

• 1993: The All-Americans vs. The Foreign Fanatics. Lex Luger, The Undertaker and The Steiner Brothers beat Yokozuna, Ludvig Borga, Crush and Quebecer Jacques. Luger was the sole survivor, pinning Borga at the end.
• 1997: Team USA vs. Team Canada. In Montreal, on the same night as the Montreal Screwjob, The British Bulldog, Jim Neidhart, Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon beat Vader, Goldust, Marc Mero and Steve Blackman. The Bulldog was the sole survivor, and the Canadian crowd loved it.

Team USA vs. Team Mexico is the first time Survivor Series has built a match around Mexico, and it is a far more natural rivalry than either of those. The United States and Mexico have the two biggest wrestling cultures in the world, and their styles are completely different.

Why Houston is the perfect place for it

Houston has one of the largest Mexican-American communities in the United States, and Texas has always been strong territory for lucha libre. That gives this match an unusual setup: on paper Team USA should be the home team, but plenty of fans in the stadium may cheer for Team Mexico. That crowd split could be the best part of the night.

Our take

This is a smart idea with very little downside. The two WarGames matches will carry the main event weight, and this match gives the undercard a clear, easy-to-follow story that does not need weeks of promos. It also puts a spotlight on the best high-flyers WWE has, in a format built for them, with short bursts, hot tags and plenty of dives.

The risk is the usual one with Survivor Series matches: if the teams are announced late and the eliminations come too quickly, it can feel like a random group of names. WWE needs to name the teams early and give at least one or two people a personal reason to be there. The Vision against Penta and his partners is the obvious place to start.

Our early pick is Team Mexico. A Mexico-themed match in Houston, announced by the AAA General Manager, feels built for a lucha libre celebration, and the best ending would be Penta as the sole survivor. If Rey Mysterio does lace up his boots, though, it is hard to see anyone else being the last man standing.

What happens next

Crown Jewel is tomorrow, November 7, and the result of The Vision vs. Penta and Je'Von Evans could decide who ends up on which team. After that, Raw and SmackDown have three weeks to fill both sides. We will update this page every time a team member is named.

For the full show, including both WarGames matches, start time and how to watch, read our Survivor Series: WarGames 2026 guide. Before then, the Crown Jewel 2026 preview has tomorrow's card and our picks.