Mexico opened the 2026 World Cup in impressive fashion by beating South Africa 2-0 in a dramatic opening match in a packed stadium in Mexico City.
Goals from Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez gave the co-hosts a 2-0 win at the Estadio Azteca, but the result was not the headline after the opening match. Three red cards in a row in the second half led to the game ending ten against nine, the first World Cup opener in history with three sending-offs.
Amazing chaos!
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Quinones broke the deadlock with the earliest goal to open a World Cup since Philipp Lahm’s goal for Germany against Costa Rica after six minutes in 2006. When he spoke afterwards, he was naturally delighted. “A lot of things came into my head, like celebrating and screaming for joy,” he said.
“I went to the bench to see my peers because they’ve given me so much confidence. I wanted to feel that joy with them.”
Julian Quinones wrote himself into the history of the championship when he scored the first goal of the tournament. Raul Jimenez then added an emotional goal in the second half, which secured the hosts all three points.
However, the result was overshadowed by a chaotic end to the match, where as many as three players were sent off. South Africa had to finish with nine men on the field, while Mexico fielded ten.
The atmosphere in the stadium was electric long before kick-off, and Mexico drew energy from the crowd already from the first kick.
Javier Aguirre’s side dominated possession early on and came close to breaking the deadlock after just five minutes. Jimenez was given far too much space in the penalty area and met a dangerous cross on the first touch, but Ronwen Williams saved brilliantly and held the position.
Mexico opens scoring at the 2026 World Cup
Mexico’s pressure continued, and the breakthrough came in the ninth minute after a costly South African mistake. A simple pass from Williams to Sphephelo Sithole caused problems. Erik Lira intercepted the ball on the edge of the box, and the loose ball fell perfectly to Quinones. He calmly placed the ball between the goalkeeper’s legs and scored the first goal of the World Cup tournament, which caused the home crowd to cheer loudly.
Mexico ramps up pressure after opening goal
The early setback shook South Africa, and Mexico looked set to extend its lead. Roberto Alvarado repeatedly found space on the right wing, while Brian Gutierrez and Alvaro Fidalgo controlled the game in midfield.
Despite Mexico’s dominance, they failed to capitalize on their chances before halftime. Quinones remained the biggest threat and came close to doubling the score when his low shot hit the post after a chaos in the box. A short time later, Jimenez was again stopped by another brilliant save from Williams, after he had received a perfect poke into the box.
South Africa gradually improved throughout the half and eventually got their first shot on goal by Siyabonga Mbokazi, but his twisted shot was easily picked up by Raul Rangel.
Sparks in the second half
The second half caught fire almost immediately. Just moments after half-time, Williams’ pass caused problems again, when a loose ball was intercepted on the edge of the box. South Africa escaped this time, but the warning signs were clear.
Three minutes later, disaster struck Hugo Broos’ team. Gutierrez stormed alone towards goal after another Mexican attack, and Sithole desperately felled him just outside the penalty area. The tackle denied a clear goal chance, and the referee had little choice but to show the tournament’s first red card.
The second goal
The second goal came in the 67th minute. Quinones showed excellent ball control and held onto the ball before playing Alvarado down the right. The winger hit a precise cross towards the middle, where Jimenez rose highest and steered a powerful header past Williams.
South Africa’s frustration boils over
Frustration began to boil over for South Africa towards the end of the match. First, substitute Themba Zwane received a direct red card after a VAR review. The referee had overstepped the situation in the first half, but the replays showed that the midfielder punched Alvarado in the face when he tried to shake him off.
Red cards in droves
The chaos continued deep into overtime. Despite South Africa being two men down, they briefly threatened with a counterattack. Cesar Montes then cynically felled Khuliso Mudau just outside the penalty area while the visitors stormed forward in the majority. The offence denied a clear goal chance and resulted in the third red card of the evening. Thus, Mexico also had to finish the match with ten players.
Even with the late sending-off, there was never any danger of Mexico losing the lead. Aguirre’s team kept possession of the ball through the final minutes and comfortably controlled into injury time before the referee blew the final whistle for an eventful World Cup opener.
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