2026 FIFA World Cup
Match Preview : Mexico vs South Africa
In less than 24 hours, the 2026 FIFA World Cup will kick off with one of the co-hosts, Mexico, taking on South Africa in a historic curtain-raiser at the iconic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
The game has garnered a lot of traction as a reverse-rematch of the 2010 World Cup opener in Johannesburg, where South Africa hosted Mexico in a memorable 1-1 draw. This marks the first time in World Cup history that an opening match matchup is being repeated.
READ MORE : 2026 FIFA World : The stage is set for the games
Javier Aguirre’s men enter the tournament in red-hot form after dominating their final warm-up friendlies, including a resounding 5-1 thrashing of Serbia, a 2-0 win over Ghana, and a 1-0 edge over Australia.
The home team will rely heavily on the 12th man at the stadium to get their World Cup dreams on wheels.
READ MORE : Stanley Menzo joins Kotoko as Technical Director
Meanwhile, Hugo Broos, head coach of South Africa, remarked in his pre-game interview that it would be difficult playing against the host nation in a packed Azteca Stadium, but he is heavily reliant on his charges (Ronwen Williams, Tebo Mokoena, Lyle Foster,Relebohile Mofokeng) to make the difference for him.
Prediction:Mexico 3-1 South Africa.