MEXICO -- On Oct. 2, 2005, Mexico made NFL history by hosting the first regular-season game outside the United States. On Nov. 21, 11 years after that memorable night, Mexico will once again make history by hosting the first Monday Night Football game outside the United States.

However, during its visit for the game between the Houston Texans and Oakland Raiders, the NFL will find that Mexico, particularly in hosting major sporting events, has changed a great deal in the past 11 years.

First, Azteca Stadium, which will host the game, has undergone several renovations that will significantly reduce the attendance from the 103,467 who saw the 2005 game between the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers. Currently, Azteca has a capacity for around 85,000 people, but that figure could change after NFL Mexico announced the sale of additional tickets in areas that were not previously considered.

In 2010, the Abierto Mexicano de Tenis was included in the ATP World Tour 500 and WTA International category, increasing its prestige, the points awarded and the prize money on offer, making it a more attractive tournament internationally.

On the same night as that 2005 game, Mexico's national under-17 soccer team was involved in a historic final against Brazil in the Under-17 World Cup, which saw Mexico crowned after defeating the Brazilian side by a resounding 3-0 scoreline. The U-17 side repeated that triumph six years later, in 2011, beating Uruguay 2-0 at Azteca Stadium, the second title hoisted by the national side since the NFL's first regular-season visit to Mexico.

On Nov. 12, 2014, 17 years after its first visit, the NBA held its second regular-season game in Mexico, as the Houston Rockets faced the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Mexico City Arena. A year later, on Dec. 3, 2015, the Boston Celtics faced the Sacramento Kings at the same venue.

Just a few days after the NBA returned to Mexico, the UFC, the world leader in mixed martial arts, made its debut in Mexico with UFC 180, headlined by Fabricio Werdum and Mark Hunt. Werdum was originally scheduled to fight Mexican-American Cain Velasquez for the heavyweight title, but the then-champion was forced to pull out of the event due to injury.

On July 13, 2015, after a seven-month wait, Werdum and Velasquez finally met in Mexico at UFC 188, with the Brazilian winning by submission in front of a crowd of more than 21,000 fans at the Mexico City Arena.

That was not the UFC's last visit to Mexico. On Nov. 21, 2015, Monterrey Arena, in Monterrey, Nuevo León, hosted the fight between Kelvin Gastelum and Neil Magny, and just last Nov. 5, former champion Rafael Dos Anjos faced Tony Ferguson in the main event at UFC Fight Night 98 in Mexico City.

In 2015, after an absence of more than 20 years, Formula 1 returned to Mexico for the Mexican Grand Prix, held at the revamped Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, with German Nico Rosberg claiming victory. This year's race was won by Lewis Hamilton.

The MLB is the only elite league that has not returned to Mexico for a regular-season game since the Colorado Rockies faced the San Diego Padres at the Monterrey Baseball Stadium in 1999, although this year the Padres and Houston Astros played two preseason games at Fray Nano Stadium, in Mexico City.

Although the MLB has not visited Mexico during that period, the country has played host to the World Baseball Classic, backed by the MLB. In 2009, Mexico City hosted a first-round pool, and Guadalajara is set to do the same in 2017.

On Sept. 13, it was announced that Mexico will host the PGA's World Golf Championships-Mexico, one of the most important tournaments on the circuit.

In the local sporting arena, Club América became the most decorated club in the history of the Liga MX when it won its 12th title, beating Tigres 3-1 in the Apertura 2014.

After swapping Mexico City for Puebla, Tigres (Tigers), one of the most popular teams in the Mexican Baseball League, were on the move once again in 2007, this time to Quintana Roo, where they have won four championships, two more than their archrivals Diablos Rojos del México (Mexico City Red Devils) have won in that same period (2008, 2014). However, the capital city team still leads the way in the all-time standings, with 16 titles to Tigres' 12.

In the Mexican Pacific League, Charros de Jalisco (Jalisco Cowboys) were reborn in 2014 and rejoined a circuit that has been dominated by the Yaquis de Ciudad Obregón, with four titles, followed by the Venados de Mazatlán (Mazatlán Deer) and Naranjeros de Hermosillo (Hermosillo Orange Growers) with three each. Hermosillo remainw the most successful team overall with 16 titles, followed by Tomateros de Culiacán (Culiacán Tomato Growers) with 10.

In that period, Venados, Naranjeros and Yaquis (twice) have been champions of the Caribbean Series, which pits the champions of the Cuban, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Venezuelan and Mexican winter leagues against one another.

The Liga Nacional de Baloncesto (National Basketball League) established itself as the most important in the country during that period, and the Halcones de la Universidad Veracruzana-Xalapa (University of Veracruz-Xalapa Hawks) have been the most successful team, winning four titles.

As for local American football, the National Student Organization of American Football (Organización Nacional Estudiantil de Futbol Americano -- ONEFA) suffered a split in 2010 that saw the formation of the breakaway CONADIEP (National Student Sports Commission for Private Institutions -- Comisión Nacional Deportiva Estudiantil de Instituciones Privadas) Premier Conference. However, it was not all bad news for the sport, as, in 2016, the Professional American Football League of Mexico was created with four teams, with the Mayas being crowned inaugural champions.

A two-team expansion (Dinos de Saltillo and Fundidores de Monterrey) has been announced for 2017 in order to further strengthen a league that was not even on the agenda last time the NFL touched down in Mexico.

So, with a revamped sporting scene and a loyal fan base, a very different Mexico from that of 2005 is ready to welcome the NFL.

Read the original Spanish-language version of this story here. See additional Monday Night Football in Mexico City stories here.