The 2026 FIFA World Cup officially kicked off on June 11 with a vibrant, culturally rich opening ceremony hosted at Mexico City’s iconic Azteca Stadium, before host nation Mexico claimed a confident 2-0 victory over South Africa in their Group A opening match.
The opening celebration set a joyful tone for the tournament, showcasing Mexico’s deep cultural heritage and diverse global traditions to a packed stadium of tens of thousands of cheering fans. Global music superstar Shakira, a two-time FIFA World Cup anthem performer with long-standing ties to the tournament, delivered an electrifying headline performance that had the crowd dancing and singing along, building widespread excitement for the upcoming month of elite football competition.
From the first whistle, the host nation dominated play against South Africa. Mexico earned their first goal just nine minutes into the match, becoming the earliest opening-game goal at a World Cup since Philipp Lahm’s sixth-minute strike for Germany against Costa Rica in 2006. The opening goal came after a sloppy pass from a South African defender put Colombia-born Mexican striker Julian Quinones in a one-on-one breakaway with South African goalkeeper Ronwen Williams. Quinones stayed calm under pressure and slotted the ball between Williams’ legs to find the net, triggering deafening celebrations from the home crowd.
The first half saw two early yellow cards, issued to South Africa’s Teboho Mokoena and Mexico’s Brian Gutierrez, both for late tackles, before a mandatory hydration break at the 25-minute mark allowed both sides to reset tactically. As the first half wound down, Mexico continued to pile on the pressure: Raúl Jiménez saw a curling shot saved by Williams in the 41st minute, and Quinones hit the post on a follow-up attempt, but South Africa managed to hold the line to go into halftime down just one goal.
The second half started with no substitutions from either side, but it quickly unraveled for South Africa. In the 52nd minute, South Africa went down to 10 men after Yaya Sithole was issued a straight red card for a reckless tackle from behind on Gutierrez that stopped a clear goalscoring opportunity, handing Mexico a man advantage and a dangerous free kick just outside the 18-yard box.
Mexico made their numerical advantage count in the 67th minute, when Raúl Jiménez doubled the host’s lead with a powerful headed finish off a pinpoint cross from Roberto Alvarado. The goal marked Jiménez’s first ever World Cup goal, sending the home crowd into a fresh frenzy of celebration.
Discipline continued to be an issue for South Africa in the closing minutes, when Themba Zwane was sent off for violent conduct, leaving South Africa to play the final stretch with just nine players on the pitch. Mexico’s César Montes also picked up a red card in stoppage time for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity, bringing the total red cards for the match to three. Despite the late reduction to 10 men, Mexico held firm to secure a clean sheet and a full three points to open their tournament.
Following the opening match, the next Group A fixture is scheduled to kick off at 23:00 the same day, with South Korea set to face the Czech Republic.