Mexico win an opener at last, in a three-red-card mess at the Azteca

The World Cup finally started, and it did not do quiet. Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 at a heaving Azteca to win a World Cup opener for the first time ever, though the scoreline barely tells the story. The game produced three red cards, the most in any World Cup match in history, and South Africa finished with nine men.

Mexico break the curse, the hard way

Julián Quiñones scored the first goal of the 2026 tournament in the 9th minute and Raúl Jiménez doubled it on 67. The rest was cards. South Africa had Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane sent off, the second for catching Roberto Alvarado in the face, and Mexico’s César Montes saw red deep in stoppage time just to keep things interesting. Seven previous openers without a win for Mexico. Number eight did the trick.

Shakira, Bocelli and a 48-flag welcome

Before any of that, the Azteca got the full song and dance. Shakira and Burna Boy performed the tournament song “Dai Dai,” Andrea Bocelli sang, and World Cup ambassador Salma Hayek Pinault told the crowd, “In this stadium, along with Canada and the United States, we welcome the 48 flags.” A 48-team World Cup needs a big curtain. It got one.

Korea dig one out in Guadalajara

The day’s other game had a comeback in it. Czechia led through captain Ladislav Krejci’s header on 59, and then South Korea flipped it in 13 minutes, Hwang In-beom levelling and setting up Oh Hyeon-gyu for the 2-1 winner. Group A has a leader already, and it is the hosts.

World Cup record: three red cards in the opener, two for South Africa and one for Mexico.

See how Group A looks after day one on the live table.

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