Mexico Opens the 2026 World Cup With a 2-0 Win and a War of Words

Mexico began the 2026 World Cup with a 2-0 victory over South Africa in the opening match at Estadio Azteca, but the postgame talk quickly turned into a dispute over how dominant the hosts really were. South Africa coach Hugo Broos said Javier Aguirre’s team looked nervous at times, prompting a sharp response from the Mexico coach.

Aguirre rejected Broos’s criticism, saying Mexico controlled the match and should have won by a wider margin. “They did not have possession of the ball. They only had one shot on target,” he said at the news conference. “Imagine what would have happened if we were not under pressure, we would have scored five goals. I completely disagree with what he said. Mexico should have won by four goals so there would be no such comments.” He added that the game should have ended 3-0, noting a shot off the post, another saved by the goalkeeper, and additional missed chances before Mexico “started complicating the game for ourselves.”

Aguirre also said the pressure of opening a home World Cup affected his players. After the second goal and South Africa’s red card, he said Mexico became less direct and slowed down. Still, he called the result a good start and insisted improvement is needed. “This is a huge stage. It makes your legs shake a little,” he said, adding that in Mexico’s previous 25 matches there had not been even one muscle cramp, while three players cramped in this game.

The opening goal belonged to Julián Quiñones, who scored his first World Cup goal and said he was “happy and excited” to net the tournament’s first goal. Born in Colombia but representing Mexico, he became the first player in World Cup history to score the opening goal of the tournament for a country other than his birth nation. Celebrations continued for hours in Mexico City, where thousands gathered at the Angel of Independence and Zócalo square despite heavy rain.