2026 FIFA World Cup | Group A | Thursday, June 11, 2026
- Mexico Vs South Africa – 10pm | Azteca Stadium
Sixteen years after their last FIFA World Cup appearance, South Africa return to football’s biggest stage on Thursday with a familiar opponent standing in their way.
Bafana Bafana open their 2026 World Cup campaign against co-hosts Mexico at the historic Azteca Stadium in Mexico City, a repeat of the opening match of the 2010 tournament in Johannesburg.
On that occasion, South Africa took the lead through Siphiwe Tshabalala’s iconic goal before Rafael Márquez earned Mexico a 1-1 draw. The result marked the beginning of a World Cup campaign that ended in group-stage disappointment for the hosts.
Now, South Africa have another chance to make history.
Despite featuring at the World Cups of 1998, 2002 and 2010, Bafana Bafana have never progressed beyond the first round. Coach Hugo Broos believes this squad can change that.
The 74-year-old Belgian, who has announced that this will be the final tournament of his coaching career, guided South Africa to the World Cup after they topped a qualifying group that included Nigeria.
Burnley striker Lyle Foster leads the attack, while captain Ronwen Williams, Teboho Mokoena, Khuliso Mudau and Themba Zwane provide the backbone of a side built largely around players from African champions Mamelodi Sundowns.
South Africa’s preparations were briefly disrupted by visa issues that delayed their departure to Mexico, but the squad has since settled in Pachuca and heads into the tournament after a 2-2 friendly draw against Jamaica.
Mexico, meanwhile, are preparing for their 18th World Cup appearance and will enjoy home support throughout the tournament.
El Tri have reached the quarterfinals twice, both times when hosting the competition in 1970 and 1986. However, expectations are more cautious this year after disappointing goalless draws against Uruguay and Portugal in warm-up matches.
Veteran striker Raúl Jiménez remains the team’s main attacking threat and is expected to play a bigger role than in previous World Cups, where he was largely used from the bench.
The hosts are led by experienced coach Javier Aguirre, who represented Mexico at the 1986 World Cup before later guiding the national team to the Round of 16 in 2002 and 2010.
With South Korea and the Czech Republic also in their group, both sides know the importance of starting with a positive result.
For South Africa, victory would be a statement that they belong back on the world stage. For Mexico, a winning start could ignite hopes of a memorable home tournament.
All eyes will be on the Azteca Stadium as two nations with unfinished World Cup business meet once again on your World of Champions where you will watch all the 104 2026 FIFA World Cup matches across all packages and GOtv for as low as 15,000/=, Everything Can Wait, Even Sleep!
