Mexico vs South Africa: World Cup Group Match – Teams, Starts and Lineups

The 2026 World Cup will be held with 13 different start times. You can use the Al Jazeera Sport widget to find your team's playing time according to your local time. Who : Mexico vs South Africa What : FIFA World Cup 2026 Group A match Where : Estadio Azteca, Mexico City When : Thursday, 1pm local time (19:00 GMT) How ​​to follow: We'll provide all the preparations before our live text commentary stream at 16:00 GMT. In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the first on African soil, Mzeban South Africa faced Mexico in the opening match of the tournament, which ended in a 1–1 draw. On Thursday, the teams meet again on the same stage. This time, co-hosts Mexico welcome South Africa, as the much-awaited 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off in North America. With 80,000 fans expected to fill the iconic Estadio Azteca, this attractive open match promises to provide an extraordinary spectacle. Al Jazeera will give you all the information: Thursday's opening of the biggest World Cup marks the start of the 39-day tournament in Mexico City, which will feature 104 games - 40 more than Qatar 2022. With the expanded participation of 48 teams, the 2026 World Cup is the largest in history and is being held in three countries for the first time: the United States, Mexico and Canada. 90 minutes before kick-off, there will be an open concert, headlined by four-time Grammy-winning star Shakira, while Colombian singer J Balvin and South African singer-songwriter Tyla will also be among the performers.

Mexico has to face domestic pressure Football loving country Mexico is all set to participate in the World Cup for the 17th time. While having the opening match of the tournament is big in itself, to make it even more special, the massive Estadio Azteca will become the first ground to host three FIFA World Cup openers (1960, 1986 and 2026). With home advantage and a good FIFA ranking, Mexico are favorites going into this match, but with over 80,000 in attendance, the co-hosts feel the pressure to live up to their fans' expectations. Mexico have not conceded a goal in their last eight matches, one of their longest unbeaten runs at the World Cup and providing further encouragement for Javier Aguirre's side.

Don't forget unknown friends South Africa, at 60th in the FIFA rankings, is well behind Mexico at 14th. But Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Brose believes his side are capable of handling the unknown. Despite close opposition to World Cup regulars against Mexico, South Africa are making a comeback after a 16-year hiatus and this will be their fourth appearance. "For us, it will be a wonderful experience," Brose told reporters ahead of the opening match. "It's very important that we stick to our game plan and not listen to what's going on in the crowd." South African preparations delayed the arrival of some members due to persistent visa issues, giving them no time to adjust to conditions in central Mexico. However, Brose's side will be hoping to disappoint the hosts once again by coming out of a difficult qualification campaign.

How does the World Cup group stage work? Mexico, South Africa, Czech Republic and South Korea are in Group A. The two best teams representing each of the 12 groups – and the eight best third-placed teams – advance to the next stage, the Round of 32, which has been added to the World Cup for the first time.

Title record against Mexico Thursday's game will be only the fifth meeting between the teams. Mexico has won twice, South Africa once, while one match ended in a scare. Their last meeting was in the opener at the 2010 World Cup, with Siphiwe Tshabalala's stunning opener canceled out by Rafael Marquez's equalizer as the teams were held to a 1-1 draw.

Form guide: (last five matches, penultimate) Mexico : W-W-W-D-D South Africa : D-D-L-D-L Mexico has won three consecutive friendlies against Ghana and Australia in the home tournament before the World Cup opener, as well as against Serbia. But South Africa have been disappointing in their preparations, going winless throughout the tournament - Bafana Bafana suffered scares against Jamaica and Nicaragua and lost against Panama.

How to watch Mexico vs South Africa? Fans in Mexico can watch the game on TUDN, Canal 5, Canal 9, Las Estrellas and Vix, starting at 1 p.m. South Africans can watch the live action on SuperSport, SportyTV and New World TV. Start time is 9 am. Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch it on ITV, while those in the US can tune in on Fox. To find out when your games start, click here.

Mexico's Probable Starting XI Raul Rangel; Jesus Gallardo, John Vasquez, Cesar Montez, Israel Reyes; Brian Gutierrez, Eric Lira, Alvaro Fidalgo; Julian Quenos, Roberto Alvarado, Raul Jimenez

South Africa Probable Starting XI Ronwan Williams; Khuliso Mudau, Ime Okon, Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Oubre Modiba; Teboho Mokoina, Sphefelo Sithole, Thalente Mbatha; Tsepang Moremi, Lyle Foster, Oswin Apolis