South Africa compete in the first fixture game of the World Cup for a second time, having started the home tournament in 2010 with a 1-1 draw against Mexico at Soccer City.
Thursday’s opening game of the 2026 finals, co-hosted by Canada, Mexico and the United States, sees Bafana Bafana and the Mexican reprise their 2010 clash but this tie at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City.
It will be the 23rd opening match in World Cup history, going all the way back to 1930 when France beat Mexico 4-1 in Montevideo in the inaugural fixture.
Mexico have played in the opening game a total of five times, more than any other country.
Their second appearance also saw them ship in four goals when Brazil beat them 4-0 at the Maracana in Rio de Janeiro in the opening clash of the 1950 tournament and they lost 3-0 to hosts Sweden in 1958.
In 1970 they drew 0-0 with the Soviet Union, one of four successive goalless draws in the opening fixture.
South Africa follows in the footsteps of Cameroon and Senegal as African nations to compete in the opener. Cameroon upset Diego Maradona’s Argentina in 1990 and Senegal beat holders France at the start of the 2002 finals in Asia.
On both occasions the African sides went on to reach the quarterfinals.
In 1974, FIFA changed the opening game from a match featuring the hosts to the first game for the holders but then changed it back in 2006.
Opening games:
1930 – France 4 Mexico 1 (Montevideo)
1934 – Italy 7 USA 1 (Rome)
1938 – Germany 1 Switzerland 1 (Paris)
1950 – Brazil 4 Mexico 0 (Maracana)
1954 – France 0 Yugoslavia 1 (Lausanne)
1958 – Sweden 3 Mexico 0 (Stockholm)
1962 – Chile 3 Switzerland 1 (Santiago)
1966 – England 0 Uruguay 0 (London)
1970 – Mexico 0 Soviet Union 0 (Mexico City)
1974 – Brazil 0 Yugoslavia 0 (Frankfurt)
1978 – West Germany 0 Poland 0 (Buenos Aires)
1982 – Argentina 0 Belgium 1 (Barcelona)
1986 – Bulgaria 1 Italy 1 (Mexico City)
1990 – Argentina 0 Cameroon 1 (Milan)
1994 – Bolivia 0 Germany 1 (Chicago)
1998 – Brazil 2 Scotland 1 (Paris)
2002 – France 0 Senegal 1 (Seoul)
2006 – Germany 4 Costa Rica 2 (Munich)
2010 – South Africa 1 Mexico 1 (Johannesburg)
2014 – Brazil 3 Croatia 1 (Sao Paulo)
2018 – Russia 5 Saudi Arabia 0 (Moscow)
2022 – Qatar 0 Ecuador 2 (Doha)
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