FIFA World Cup

MEX Mexico Mexico - RSA South Africa South Africa

Mexico Mexico

South Africa South Africa

J. Quinones
9'

Mexico City Stadium(Sold out)

Wilton Pereira Sampaio

Full-time: Mexico 2-0 South Africa

Mexico get off to a winning start after cruising past South Africa with an assured performance. Jiménez scored their deserved second goal with just over 20 minutes to play, which all but confirmed the win given how little South Africa had offered going forward. Zwane then added to his side's woes late on when he was sent of for catching Montes in the face, before Mexico themselves saw red when Montes brought down Mudau on the counter.

End of second half

Full-time

90'

+ 4

Crossed wires

South Africa make a mess of their free-kick routine and Mexico can clear easily.

90'

+ 2

Another red!

But this time it's for Mexico. Montes hauls down Mudau just outside the area as South Africa countered, becoming the third dismissal of the game.

90'

+ 2

Red card

César Montes

90'

+ 1

Seven more minutes

Mexico could yet add a third.

Down to nine!

Zwane is given his marching orders for striking the face of Montes as he tried to enter the box.

84'

Red card

Themba Zwane

81'

Rangel saves

Appollis' deflected driven strike zips into the 'keeper's arms.

79'

Closing stages

Mexico head into the final 10 minutes with a comfortable lead and one eye on their next fixture already, but can South Africa nick a late goal?

79'

Substitution

Alexis Vega

Julian Quinones

76'

Substitution

Oswin Appollis

Aubrey Modiba

76'

Substitution

Evidence Makgopa

Iqraam Rayners

76'

Substitution

Armando González

Raúl Jiménez

76'

Substitution

Edson Álvarez

Érik Lira

76'

Overwhelmed

Mexico haven't given South Africa time to breathe in this half.

Goal attempts

11off target

5on target

1off target

2on target

74'

Yellow card

Nkosinathi Sibisi

73'

Waved away

Jiménez is brought down as he enters the box and calls for a penalty but sees his claim dismissed.

There's number two!

And Mexico now have some breathing space between themselves and South Africa going into the final 20 minutes. Alvarado's delicious in-swinging cross to the back post finds the head of Jiménez, who heads home from close range.

67'

Raúl Jiménez

GOAL!

2:0

Assist:R. Alvarado

Goal probability

Goal probability determines the likelihood that the ball will land in the goal from every position on the pitch. The value is based on large amounts of data from previous years; factors such as shot angle, distance to goal and opponent pressure - as well as mathematical models.

30 %

Distance to Goal

The distance to goal is measured at the time of the shot - from the position of the ball to the center of the goal.

5.98 m

66'

Substitution

Gilberto Mora

Álvaro Fidalgo

66'

Substitution

Luis Chávez

Brian Gutiérrez

65'

Nervy

South Africa lose the ball in a dangerous position near their own box, but Gutiérrez's through ball to Jiménez is intercepted and they survive for now.

61'

Substitution

Themba Zwane

Jayden Adams

60'

A second on the horizon?

xGoals

The xGoals value of a club is calculated from the sum of all goal probabilities (goals and shots on goal) of that team. During a match, it’s easy to see whether the club is performing better than expected (goals > xGoals) - or maybe even higher (xGoals > goals).

Will Mexico manage to put some distance between themselves and South Africa?

xGoals

1.14

0.12

Goals

Uphill battle

South Africa have struggled to contain Mexico throughout this contest and will now have to find a way back into the game with 10 men.

56'

Substitution

Thalente Mbatha

Lyle Foster

52'

Into the wall

Jimenez steps up to take the free-kick, but can't find a way past the yellow wall.

From bad to worse!

Sithole is dismissed after bringing down Gutiérrez as he closed in on goal, and now Mexico have a free-kick right on the edge of the box.

50'

Red card

Yaya Sithole

47'

Immediate chance!

South Africa give the ball away from a goal-kick again, but this time Fidalgo can't punish them as he's forced wide where his cross back toward goal is blocked.

Kick-off!

46'

And we're back!

The second half is underway.

Half-time: Mexico 1-0 South Africa

The hosts go into the break with a deserved lead following a strong first half showing. They had the majority of the ball and managed to keep South Africa quiet, with Quinones pouncing on an early mistakes to fire his side ahead.

Half-time

45'

+ 4

Chance goes begging

Gutiérrez finds himself with a sight of goal inside the box but fails to bend his finish around the defender, and see his attempt roll tamely out for a goal-kick.

45'

Mbokazi tries his luck

The midfielder lets one fly from distance but his effort is caught by Rangel.

43'

Off the post!

Quinones' low strike from the edge of the area almost finds the near corner, but bounces off the post instead.

42'

Huge save!

An in-swinging cross almost finds the boot of Jiménez, but Williams still does well to stop the ball finding the far corner of the net.

Break approaching

The two sides are battling away as we enter the final minutes of the half.

36'

Vital save

Mexico threaten down the left, but Williams gets to the low cross from Gallardo first and relieves the pressure.

32'

Grace and grit

Mexico are doing the dirty work well, too.

Tackles won

Looking for a foothold

Mexico continue to dominate the ball, while South Africa look for a way back into this game.

25'

Drinks break

The first drinks break is taking place after an intense first 25 minutes.

24'

Mexico clear

South Africa win a free-kick in a promising position to the right of the penalty area, but Mexico deal with it at the first time of asking.

23'

Yellow card

Brian Gutiérrez

19'

Quinones from distance!

He turns and shoots from range, but gets too much on it and sees it fly past the upright.

17'

Frustrated

Mokoena picks up the game's first booking as South Africa's first sustained period of possession in the Mexico half comes to an end.

17'

Yellow card

Teboho Mokoena

13'

Slow burners

South Africa are yet to threaten the Mexico goal.

Goal attempts

1off target

2on target

0off target

0on target

Mexico take the lead!

South Africa give the ball away from their own goal-kick and Mexico pounce. Lira wins the ball and Quinones picks it up on the edge of the area before slamming it low and hard past Williams.

Julian Quinones

GOAL!

1:0

Assist:É. Lira

Goal probability

13 %

Distance to Goal

The distance to goal is measured at the time of the shot - from the position of the ball to the center of the goal.

16.03 m

Early possession

Mexico have started the brighter of the two sides.

First chance!

Jiménez sees his shot from the edge of the box well saved by Williams.

Missed opportunity

Mexico have an early free-kick but instead of sending it into the box Gutiérrez shoots from distance and sees his effort blocked.

Kick-off!

We're underway!

The 2026 FIFA World Cup has officially kicked off!

Final preparations

The players are put through their paces as the first whistle draws closer.

Getting closer

We're now just an hour away from kick-off following the opening ceremony.

Starting line-up: Mexico

Mexico subs

Acevedo, Ochoa, Sanchez, Alvarez, M. Chavez, Romo, Pineda, Vargas, Mora, L. Chavez, Vega, Gimenez, Gonzalez, Huerta, Martinez

Starting line-up: South Africa

South Africa subs

Chaine, Goss, Matuludi, Ndamane, Kabini, Makhanya, Cross, Mbatha, Zwane, Appollis, Moremi, Mofokeng, Maseko, Makgopa, Sebelebele

Last time they met

These two last met at the 2010 World Cup, when South Africa were the hosts and they faced Mexico in the tournament opener. The game ended 1-1, with Rafa Marquez scoring a late equaliser after Siphiwe Tshabalala had opened the scoring with one of the most memorable World Cup goals ever.

Atmosphere building

Fans are already at the stadium in anticipation of tonight's opening game.

How they got here: Mexico

Mexico are one of three host nations for this tournament alongside the USA and Canada. They have lost one of their past 11 matches, and enjoyed success last summer as they defeated their immediate neighbours to the north 2-1 in the final to lift the Gold Cup.

How they got here: South Africa

Despite having regular participants Nigeria in their group, South Africa topped Group C of African qualifying for this World Cup to secure their place in the finals. This will be their fourth showpiece, having not qualified since 2010 when they were hosts.

Bundesliga 2 involvement

No Mexico player in the squad plays their club football in Germany, but Hannover man Ime Okon is part of the South Africa group. The centre-back joined from SuperSport United last summer and featured 26 times in all competitions for Hannover in 2025/26 as they narrowly missed out on promotion to the Bundesliga.

Azteca Stadium to make history

Mexico and South Africa will face off at the Azteca Stadium, which will make history as the first stadium to host the opening game of a World Cup on three occasions. In 1970, Mexico drew 0-0 with South Korea in the tournament's first game, while Italy and Bulgaria also played out a goalless draw at the stadium in the 1986 World Cup curtain-raiser. Let's hope for more goals here!

The World Cup starts here

Forty-eight teams are on the start line for this 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup, all with the same dream - to lift the golden trophy on 19 July. Host nation Mexico will kick us off against South Africa - let the festival of football begin!

Welcome!

Follow all of the action and live build-up from the FIFA World Cup 2026 opener between Mexico and South Africa at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City on 11 June (kick-off: 9.00pm CEST).