Mexico will open the 2026 World Cup against South Africa on Thursday at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, kicking off the first edition of the tournament to feature 48 teams and three host nations. The match begins at 1 p.m. local time and will be broadcast in the United States on Fox, opening a month of football staged across Mexico, the United States and Canada.
The fixture is a near-mirror of the 2010 World Cup opener, when South Africa, as hosts, drew 1-1 with Mexico. Siphiwe Tshabalala's strike in the 55th minute that year remains one of the tournament's iconic goals before Rafael Marquez equalised. Sixteen years on, only one player from either squad that day returns: Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, who was an unused substitute in 2010.
Mexico arrive in form, unbeaten across eight friendlies in 2026 under coach Javier Aguirre, including wins over Ghana, Australia and a 5-1 rout of Serbia. Aguirre, who also led El Tri against South Africa in 2010, will be without goalkeeper Luis Angel Malagon and midfielder Marcel Ruiz, both sidelined by injury.
South Africa's preparations have been less smooth. Coach Hugo Broos voiced frustration after warm-up draws against Nicaragua and Jamaica, and Bafana Bafana face fitness doubts over left-back Aubrey Modiba, with wingers Thapelo Morena and Mohau Nkota ruled out injured. It is South Africa's first World Cup appearance since they hosted in 2010.
The two sides share Group A with South Korea and Czechia. Under the expanded format, the top two teams in each of the 12 groups advance automatically to a new round of 32, joined by the eight best third-placed finishers, lengthening the path to the July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Thursday's match will be the third time Estadio Azteca has staged a World Cup opener, after 1970 and 1986, making it the only stadium to do so three times. The venue, operating under the commercial name Estadio Banorte for the tournament, has been refurbished and was formally handed to FIFA in May.
Expanding the field to 48 teams has swelled the tournament to 104 matches over 39 days, the largest World Cup in history. FIFA has spread the group stage across 16 host cities, with Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey carrying Mexico's share alongside 11 U.S. venues and two in Canada.
For Mexico, opening on home soil carries weight beyond the result. El Tri have reached the World Cup knockout rounds at every edition they have entered for decades but have not advanced past the round of 16 since 1986, a barrier the team will again be pressed to break in front of home crowds.