Newspunjab
11 june,2026
The wait for millions of football fans around the world is over as the FIFA World Cup 2026 is set to get off to a grand start on Friday. On the first day of the tournament, two matches will be played according to Indian time, which will mark the formal start of this mega event. In the opening match, hosts Mexico will face South Africa at the Mexico City Stadium. Mexico will want to start the tournament with a win, taking advantage of its home ground and the support of the audience, while South Africa will try to make a comeback by facing a strong opponent. There have been four international matches between the two teams so far, in which Mexico has registered two wins, South Africa has managed to win one match and one match has been a draw. The special thing is that both the teams have also clashed in the 2010 World Cup, where the match ended in a 1-1 draw. Mexico is at 15th place in the world rankings, while South Africa is at 60th place, due to which Mexico is considered the favorite on paper. Mexico’s hopes will rest on captain Edson Alvarez and experienced striker Raul Jimenez, while South Africa’s team will rely on the performances of captain Ronwayne Williams, Lyle Foster and Oswin Apolis. Apart from this, the second match of the day will be played between South Korea and the Czech Republic. With the start of the tournament, there is a wave of excitement among football fans around the world and the coming weeks will see a flurry of exciting matches.
