Match Report

The 23rd edition of the FIFA World Cup kicked off in historic fashion at the legendary Estadio Azteca, making it the first stadium ever to stage the World Cup opening match three times. Co-hosts Mexico launched their campaign with a decisive 2-0 victory over South Africa (Bafana Bafana) in front of an energetic home crowd of over 87,000 spectators. Mexico took an early lead in the 9th minute through Julián Quiñones, capitalizing on a costly defensive mistake by South African midfielder Sphephelo Sithole. Despite dominating possession, Mexico had to work hard to extend their lead, which finally came in the 67th minute via veteran striker Raúl Jiménez. The match became highly volatile in the second half, leading to a total of three red cards being shown by the officiating crew, finishing with South Africa down to 9 men and Mexico down to 10 men.

Timeline

1. 9′⚽Julián Quiñones
2. 16′•Teboho Mokoena
3. 22′•Brian Gutiérrez
4. 50′•Sphephelo Sithole
5. 67′⚽Raúl Jiménez
6. 73′•Nkosinathi Sibisi
7. 84′•Themba Zwane
8. 92′•César Montes

Lineups

Statistics