FIFA World Cup 2026 – Day 1

JUN

GROUP A
Mexico v South Africa
Estadio Banorte
(Mexico City Stadium)

14 	FIFA rank 	60
Host 	Qualifying 	W5 D3 L2

OPTA prediction (%)
65.7
14.2
Draw: 20.1

Head-to-head
2
1
Draw: 1

GROUP A
South Korea v Czechia
Estadio Akron
(Guadalajara Stadium)

25 	FIFA rank 	39
W11 D5 L0 Qualifying 	W5 D3 L2

OPTA prediction (%)
42.9
31.1
Draw: 26.0

Head-to-head
1
1
Draw: 1

RECENT FIFA WORLD CUP OPENING MATCHES
1990	Argentina 	0–1	 Cameroon		Milan, Italy
1994	Germany 		1–0	 Bolivia			Chicago, United States
1998	Brazil 		2–1	 Scotland		Saint-Denis, France
2002	France 		0–1	 Senegal			Seoul, South Korea
2006	Germany 		4–2	 Costa Rica		Munich, Germany
2010	South Africa 	1–1	 Mexico			Johannesburg, South Africa
2014	Brazil 		3–1	 Croatia			São Paulo, Brazil
2018	Russia 		5–0	 Saudi Arabia		Moscow, Russia
2022	Qatar 		0–2	 Ecuador			Al Khor, Qatar

Sources: FIFA, OPTA
All dates Eastern Time (GMT-4)
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