After weeks of build-up, World Cup 2026 has finally arrived and will be kickstarted with a bang as a glitzy opening ceremony in Mexico City is followed by the first match of the tournament – Mexico v South Africa.
Music icons Shakira and Burna Boy will headline a star-studded opening ceremony at Estadio Azteca – the first of three at the tournament, with the US and Canada also hosting their own ceremonies tomorrow.
Once the stage has been removed and the confetti cleared, attention will turn to the on-pitch action with a Mexico side led by Javier Aguirre and harbouring hopes of a deep run on home soil taking on Group A underdogs South Africa, who are at the World Cup for the first time since hosting in 2010.
In that tournament, this exact fixture was also the opening contest and Siphiwe Tshabalala sent home fans wild with a 55th-minute goal before Rafael Marquez grabbed a 79th-minute equaliser to spare Mexican blushes. Will we be in for a repeat this evening?
Follow all the action from the opening ceremony before co-hosts Mexico face South Africa below:
South Africa squad in full
It is a largely domestic based side plucked from the big two of Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs – meaning familiarity could be their biggest strength
Goalkeepers: Ronwen Williams (Mamelodi Sundowns), Ricardo Goss (Siwelele FC), Sipho Chaine (Orlando Pirates)
Defenders: Khuliso Mudau (Mamelodi Sundowns), Olwethu Makhanya (Philadelphia Union), Bradley Cross (Kaizer Chiefs), Thabang Matuludi (Polokwane City), Nkosinathi Sibisi (Orlando Pirates), Aubrey Modiba (Mamelodi Sundowns), Khulumani Ndamane (Mamelodi Sundowns), Ime Okon (Hannover 96), Samukele Kabini (Molde FK), Mbekezeli Mbokazi (Chicago Fire)
Midfielders: Teboho Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns), Jayden Adams (Mamelodi Sundowns), Thalente Mbatha (Orlando Pirates), Sphephelo Sithole (CD Tondela)
Forwards: Oswin Appollis (Orlando Pirates), Tshepang Moremi (Orlando Pirates), Evidence Makgopa (Orlando Pirates), Lyle Foster (Burnley), Iqraam Rayners (Mamelodi Sundowns), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates), Themba Zwane (Mamelodi Sundowns), Patrick Maswanganyi (Orlando Pirates), Kamogelo Sebelebele (Orlando Pirates), Thapelo Morena (Mamelodi Sundowns), Thapelo Maseko (AEL Limassol).
Coach: Hugo Broos.
Mexico squad in full
A number of experienced campaigners with Premier League experience are joined by Gilberto Mora, a teenager whose domestic breakthrough has captured the attention of European big guns.
Goalkeepers: Raul Rangel (Guadalajara), Guillermo Ochoa (AEL Limassol), Carlos Acevedo (Santos Laguna)
Defenders: Jorge Sanchez (PAOK), Israel Reyes (Club America), Cesar Montes (Lokomotiv Moscow), Johan Vasquez (Genoa), Jesus Gallardo (Toluca), Mateo Chavez (AZ)
Midfielders: Erik Lira (Cruz Azul), Orbelin Pineda (AEK Athens), Alvaro Fidalgo (Real Betis), Roberto Alvarado (Guadalajara), Brian Gutierrez (Guadalajara), Luis Romo (Guadalajara), Edson Alvarez (West Ham), Obed Vargas (Atletico Madrid), Gilberto Mora (Tijuana), Luis Chavez (Dynamo Moscow)
Forwards: Cesar Huerta (Anderlecht), Alexis Vega (Toluca), Julian Quinones (Al-Qadsiah), Guillermo Martinez (UNAM), Armando Gonzalez (Guadalajara), Santiago Gimenez (AC Milan), Raul Jimenez (Fulham)
Coach: Javier Aguirre
How South Africa could fare
Back on the biggest stage for the first time since hosting in 2010, will there be a moment to rival “Goal, Bafana, Bafana” in a repeat of that opening fixture 16 years ago? Probably not.
They entered last winter’s Africa Cup of Nations with high hopes of a deep run only for Cameroon to win a round of 16 meeting 2-1, while their qualification for this tournament appeared in some jeopardy after being docked three points after midfielder Teboho Mokoena mistakenly played in a qualifier versus Lesotho despite being suspended because of an accumulation of yellow cards..
Lyle Foster, the Burnley forward, may be the only recognisable name for fans watching on from the UK but their big strength will be familiarity. Eight of the squad are clubmates for Mamelodi Sundowns, the dominant domestic team who had won eight of the previous titles before Orlando Pirates pipped them by a point this season. There are eight Pirates in the squad too.
That camaraderie will be key if they are to cause a surprise, though head coach Hugo Broos, a 74-year-old veteran, is hardly spelling out grand expectations. “We’re going to do our best but I don’t think anyone will blame us if we don’t make it out of the group,” he said recently.
How Mexico could fare
Automatically qualified, this will be El Tri’s 18th finals appearance and they should carry reasonable hope of reaching the quarter-finals for the third time and first since 1986 – the most recent occasion they were hosts.
Led by Javier Aguirre, in his third spell, Mexico will be determined to prove a point following a nightmare start to this decade. They failed to make it out of their group in Qatar on goal difference – conceding a 95th minute goal against Saudi Arabia in their third match – and, worse, lost a succession of CONCACAF finals against the USA before regaining the Gold Cup in 2023 and retaining it last summer.
Aguirre, whose previous teams exited at the round of 16 in 2002 and 2010, was re-appointed in July 2024 and has reverted the tactical approach to a familiar brand of relative chaos after the attempts to dominate possession under Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino, the former Barcelona head coach, did not yield desired results.
In ‘86 their dreams were ended by a penalty defeat to West Germany in the quarters. Given the increased size of competition 40 years on and the depth of other nations, that stage is both a realistic ambition and their likely limit – although the most likely bracket suggests England would await in the last 16.
2010 opener revisited
This, of course, is a reverse of the 2010 opener when Mexico spoiled South Africa’s party as hosts by scoring a late equaliser.
Siphiwe Tshabalala’s thunderbolt – creating an iconic piece of commentary from Peter Drury – had teased Bafana Bafana with what briefly looked like a dream opener.
But then Rafael Marquez levelled in Soccer City as South Africa ended up exiting at the group stage.
Revenge appears unfancied tonight but who knows what pressure the co-hosts may be feeling.
How USA ’94 changed football forever
On the day that USA ’94 started, as Jack Charlton tried to deliver instructions at Giants Stadium ahead of Ireland vs Italy the following evening, some of his players just couldn’t stop looking up. “My eyes were everywhere,” Andy Townsend said.
It wasn’t quite the World Cup as they knew it, but it was special. As Townsend and his teammates looked up, of course, the view was made all the more spectacular by how it reached into bright blue skies.
That remains the impression of USA ’94. Through all of the historic images, from a Romario toe-poke to the audacity of Gheorghe Hagi and Roberto Baggio’s final penalty miss, everything is so bright.
Miguel Delaney reflects on the impact of the previous World Cup in the US and discusses what legacy this summer’s tournament might leave:
How USA ’94 changed football forever
Trumpification of 2026 World Cup
The biggest World Cup of all time finally starts today. In so many ways, from Iran and visa issues to 48 teams and 16 venues, it is an unprecedented tournament.
Miguel Delaney, on the ground in New York, delves into the details behind the immense scale of ‘United 2026’
The most immediate numbers, at least, do illustrate this. This World Cup involves: the most ever teams, at 48; the most ever hosts, at three; the most ever venues, at 16; and the greatest ever distance between venues, at 4,780km, with all of this adding up to unprecedented astronomical cost for fans and even federations.
Group A guide
As Mexico raises the curtain on this World Cup against South Africa, Alan Smith delves into all things Group A:
In one of the most evocative stadiums of all and under a searing afternoon sun, the World Cup will finally begin when Mexico face South Africa. And, for many, all the justifiable gripes with a bloated format, price gouging and political manoeuvring may instantly disappear following the first glimpse of the Azteca on their TV screens.
The co-hosts, on paper, should find this group – also joined by South Korea and Czech Republic – straightforward but the outstanding question is how they will cope with the pressure and an opening day win against the least heralded of this quartet appears a must.
World Cup set for three star-studded opening ceremonies – but do not expect a Super Bowl-style extravanganza
This World Cup is set to make history with an unprecedented trio of star-studded opening ceremonies across its host nations: the United States, Canada and Mexico.
Orchestrating these grand spectacles is Italian producer Marco Balich, renowned for his work on this year’s Milan Cortina Winter Olympics opening ceremony.
Each ceremony will feature top artistic performances designed to tap into the national identity, though Balich clarified that spectators should not anticipate a Super Bowl-style halftime extravaganza.
Instead, the events will blend welcoming speeches, a parade of flags, the presentation of the match ball, and approximately 30 minutes of musical entertainment. “It’s a celebration of football, Fifa and the fact that, thanks to soccer, people get together in peace and harmony,” Balich affirmed.
What to expect from Mexico’s opening ceremony
This World Cup has three opening ceremonies lined up (because of course it does…) and the first of those is ahead of the opening match this evening.
Mexico will get World Cup proceedings underway with their opening ceremony at 6:30pm BST.
Held at Mexico City Stadium, better known worldwide as the Estadio Azteca, the ceremony will take place ahead of the Group A clash between Mexico and South Africa, a repeat of the clash that raised the curtain on the 2010 World Cup in Johannesburg.
Shakira and Burna Boy are poised to headline the spectacle, performing the official tournament song, Dai Dai. Additional performers include Alejandro Fernandez, Belinda, Danny Ocean, J Balvin, Lila Downs, Los Angeles Azules, Mana, and Tyla.
So if any of those artists are your cup of tea, then, erm… enjoy!
