Mexico ended their 48-year absence in the Olympic Games, when they secured the final place at stake for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games through the World Olympic Qualification Tournament, which took place in their home turf in Mexico City. They last competed in the Olympics in 1968 and since then, Mexico have been in search of its breakthrough performance that would get them back to the Olympic stage. Mexico finished third in the NORCECA Olympic qualifier, which was won by Cuba. They have been long in the shadow of regional powerhouses the United States and Cuba, and to a lesser extent Canada, Mexico’s international record stretches back to 1955 when they took the silver medal at the Pan American Games in Mexico City. They won bronze in the 1959 and 1975 editions of the competition. They have also won three silver medals and two bronze medals at the NORCECA Championship. Their global experience extends to five appearances at the World Championship over the years, with 10th place in 1974 being their best result. However, they have qualified only twice since 1982.

In 2014, Mexico debuted in the World League and they finished joint-fifth in Group 3. Their opening round of matches were held in Mexico City and it was there that they were able to secure the two wins, against Turkey and Tunisia, that secured them third place in Pool F. In 2015, they played against China, Slovakia and Greece as the second highest-ranked side in the pool, but failed to win any match in the preliminary round. At the 2014 World Championship in Poland, Mexico finished fifth in their first round pool, missing out on qualification with their solitary win coming in five sets against bottom side Egypt.