The 2026 FIFA World Cup, the largest edition of global football’s flagship tournament in history, officially got underway on Thursday, with co-host Mexico claiming a dramatic 2-0 victory over South Africa in the opening Group A clash at Mexico City Stadium.
This historic venue made its own mark on the tournament before kickoff, becoming the first stadium in the world to welcome World Cup matches across three different editions of the competition. It did not take long for the first goal of the tournament to arrive: Julian Quinones put Mexico ahead just nine minutes into the match, before veteran 35-year-old striker Raul Jimenez doubled the host’s lead with a well-placed header to seal the three points.
The match was defined by chaotic on-pitch discipline, with three players sent off by Brazilian referee Wilton Sampaio in front of a sold-out crowd of 80,000 fans. South Africa was reduced to nine men after midfielder Sphephelo Sithole was dismissed for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity, followed by Themba Zwane, who received a red card for a physical altercation involving a slap. Mexico was also down to 10 men late in the game, as center-back Cesar Montes was sent off for a dangerous late foul.
After the final whistle, Mexico head coach Javier Aguirre opened up about the unforeseen challenges his side overcame to secure the win, revealing the squad had struggled with severe opening-match nerves. “When you’re starting out the World Cup, of course your legs will shake,” Aguirre explained. “Never in 25 years had anyone had any cramps but three of them had cramps today. We were in awe when we saw the stadium and they got a little bit of stage fright. But we never suffered.”
Thursday’s kickoff launched the first 48-team World Cup in history, a tournament co-hosted by North American nations Mexico, the United States and Canada. The 39-day competition will conclude with the final on July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Before the match kicked off, the official opening ceremony entertained the packed crowd, featuring performances from Colombian global pop icon Shakira, Nigerian afrobeats star Burna Boy performing the tournament’s official anthem *Dai Dai*, and a closing set from celebrated Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. While the energy inside the stadium was overwhelmingly festive, the scene outside the venue was far more tense: dozens of protesters made up of teachers, student activists, and relatives of missing Mexican people clashed with heavy police presence outside the stadium. A small group of protesters breached security barriers and exchanged blows with officers shortly after Mexico scored its opening goal.
The opening match drew massive viewing crowds across North America beyond the stadium: tens of thousands of fans packed into an official fan zone in central Mexico City to watch the game on large screens, while hundreds of fans from Los Angeles’ large Mexican community gathered at the city’s iconic Coliseum to follow the action together.
The start of on-pitch action comes as a long-awaited relief for FIFA, which has faced widespread backlash and criticism heading into the tournament over the soaring cost of match tickets for fans.