Francisco Guillermo Ochoa Magaña (Spanish pronunciation: [ɡiˈʝeɾmo oˈtʃo.a]; born 13 July 1985), commonly known as Memo Ochoa, is a Mexican former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He was a full international with the Mexico national team, which he captained, and is widely considered to be one of the greatest Mexican goalkeepers of all time.
At club level, Ochoa made his professional debut with América in 2004, where he won the Clausura 2005 league title, the 2005 Campeón de Campeones and the 2006 CONCACAF Champions' Cup. He moved to Europe in 2011, playing for Ajaccio in France, Malaga and Granada in Spain and Standard Liège in Belgium, where he won the 2017–18 Belgian Cup. He returned to América in 2019, setting a club record for the most clean sheets, before returning to Europe with spells at Salernitana in Italy, AVS in Portugal, and AEL Limassol in Cyprus. Over his career, he made more than 750 senior club appearances.
Ochoa received his first cap for Mexico at age 20 in a friendly match against Hungary. He was selected for six consecutive FIFA World Cup squads between 2006 and 2026, joining a select group of players to achieve the feat. His international career also included appearances at two FIFA Confederations Cups, two Olympic tournaments (winning a bronze medal in 2020), two Copas América, one Toulon Tournament, one CONCACAF Pre-Olympic Tournament, four CONCACAF Nations Leagues and seven CONCACAF Gold Cups. Winning six Gold Cup titles, he is the most successful player in the tournament's history. Prior to the start of the 2026 World Cup, Ochoa announced his intention to retire from professional football at the end of Mexico's run, concluding his career following their elimination in the round of 16.
Guillermo Ochoa made his debut with América during the Clausura 2004 tournament against Monterrey, being only 18 years old when called up by head coach Leo Beenhakker. Ochoa quickly demonstrated his skill and talent in goal, and the young goalkeeper was thrust into the spotlight to replace injured veteran Adolfo Ríos. He would then share the starting job with Ríos after he recovered from his aforementioned injury. At the conclusion of his first season, he won the Rookie of the Tournament award.
When the Apertura 2004 tournament began, Ochoa was thought to be the heir apparent to Ríos, who had retired. However, new head coach Oscar Ruggeri brought new goalkeepers with him, among them Argentine Sebastián Saja. Ruggeri's stay at the club was marred by controversy and unpopular decisions. He was fired after only six games into the season and Ochoa was soon reinstated by new coach Mario Carrillo. Thereafter, he started every game for Club América save for incidents involving injuries or national team duty. Under Carrillo, Ochoa won his first championship with América following the Clausura 2005 season. He also won the 2005 Campeón de Campeones and the 2006 CONCACAF Champions' Cup with América. His high-level domestic performances during this period culminated in him winning consecutive Golden Glove awards for the 2006–07 season.
The peak of Ochoa's first stint with América arrived in October 2007, when he was included in France Football's shortlist for the Ballon d'Or. He made history as the first Mexican player ever nominated for the prestigious award, finishing 30th overall in the global voting and standing out as one of only three candidates on the shortlist who did not play for a European club at the time. He sustained this elite form into early 2008, helping América win the InterLiga tournament with excellent performances, most notably in the group match against Monarcas Morelia, where he saved a late penalty kick, preserving América's 1–0 lead. By the winter of 2010, his performances drew substantial transfer interest from abroad, with British media widely reporting that Manchester United were heavily tracking the goalkeeper for the 2011-12 season. Ochoa ultimately concluded his first era with Club América at the end of the Clausura 2011 tournament, following a quarter-final defeat to Monarcas Morelia, before completing his highly anticipated move to Europe.
On 4 July 2011, Ochoa signed a three-year contract, with an additional one-year option, with French club Ajaccio, recently promoted to Ligue 1. He played in his first two friendlies with Ajaccio against Bordeaux and Real Sociedad, losing 1–2 and 0–4 respectively.
Ochoa made his official club debut on 5 August 2011 against Toulouse, losing 0–2. On 18 and 21 December, Ajaccio won two games in a row, with Ochoa keeping two consecutive clean-sheets, his third clean-sheet in total of the season. Ochoa also contributed in 3–0 victory against Étoile Fréjus Saint-Raphaël in the Coupe de France. On 14 January 2012, he helped Ajaccio with a 2–1 victory over Auxerre, and on 21 January, he played against Valenciennes in a 2–1 victory which put Ajaccio out of the relegation zone since the start of the season. Ajaccio won its sixth game with Ochoa in a 2–1 home win against Dijon. For the last game of the season, Ajaccio needed a win against Toulouse to escape the relegation zone. Ochoa started and played 90 minutes against Toulouse and helped Ajaccio win 2–0 to stay in Ligue 1. Ochoa finished his first season with 8 clean sheets, 43 saves and 151 blocks. He also finished the Ligue 1 season with 59 goals conceded, making him—along with Caen goalkeeper Alexis Thébaux—the most scored-on goalkeeper of the season. AC Ajaccio fans voted him as Player of the Season.
On 1 July, Ajaccio club president Alain Orsoni announced Ochoa would stay for the 2012–13 season amidst rumoured interest from clubs such as Fenerbahçe and Sevilla, but neither the clubs nor Ochoa's manager could come to a solid agreement.
On 11 August, Ochoa started and played against Nice in a 1–0 away win for their first game and win for the season. On 19 August, Ochoa played in Ajaccio's 0–0 draw at home against Paris Saint-Germain, in which he played a big part by keeping a clean sheet. In the third match of the season, Ochoa played 60 minutes against Valenciennes in which he had to be substituted out due to a collision with a teammate. Ajaccio lost the match 0–3. Ochoa finished the season with 12 clean sheets. He was voted again by fans as Player of the Season.
Ochoa started in Ajaccio's first game of the season on 11 August 2013 against Saint-Étienne. Ajaccio lost 0–1. On 18 August, Ochoa played all 90 minutes against Paris Saint-Germain at the Parc des Princes, with Ajaccio taking an early 1–0 advantage, though an Edinson Cavani goal in the 86th minute cost Ajaccio a famous victory, instead having to settle for a 1–1 draw. Ochoa's performance was praised, with many noting the Mexican had saved 12 of PSG's 39 total shots.
On 18 January 2014, Ochoa played his 100th match in Europe in Ajaccio's 0–2 away loss to Nice. Following a 1–2 defeat to Bastia on 20 April, Ajaccio were officially relegated to Ligue 2 after spending three years in the top flight. Ochoa played his final match with the club on 17 May in a 1–3 defeat to Saint-Étienne. After officially announcing his departure, the club bid farewell to Ochoa in an open letter on social media.
Following his standout performances at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Ochoa signed a three-year contract with Spanish La Liga club Málaga on 1 August 2014. Despite arriving with high expectations and participating in pre-season, he found himself relegated to the substitutes' bench, as manager Javi Gracia preferred Carlos Kameni as his first-choice goalkeeper. Ochoa eventually made his competitive debut for the club on 3 December in a 1–1 Copa del Rey draw against Deportivo de La Coruña, but returned to the bench in the following league game.
By early November, his lack of playing time drew public frustration from Mexico national team manager Miguel Herrera, who expressed displeasure with his first-choice goalkeeper receiving limited playing time, and sparked widespread media speculation of a possible winter transfer to Liverpool. However, the January transfer window closed without a move, with Málaga management stating they were pleased to retain Ochoa, adding the player had been "a professional".