Mexico begin FIFA World Cup campaign with 2-0 win over South Africa in fiery Estadio Azteca opener

Hosts Mexico kicked off their FIFA World Cup campaign in style, defeating South Africa 2-0 at the iconic Estadio Azteca on Friday in a match that featured three red cards and goals from Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez.

Backed by a passionate home crowd, Mexico extended their remarkable unbeaten run at the Estadio Azteca while registering a 22nd consecutive victory against African opposition across all competitions. Their last defeat to an African side came against South Africa in the 2005 Gold Cup.

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The opening exchanges were tense as South Africa, with every player making a World Cup debut, looked composed despite some risky distribution from goalkeeper Ronwen Williams. Mexico nearly struck in the fifth minute when Raul Jimenez tested Williams, who produced an excellent save.

The breakthrough arrived in the ninth minute when Julian Quinones capitalised on a costly turnover. After Sithole lost possession to Erik Lira, the ball fell to Quinones, who drilled a low effort past Williams from the edge of the box to score the first goal of the tournament. According to Sky Sports, it was the earliest opening goal at a World Cup since Philipp Lahm scored for Germany after six minutes against Costa Rica in 2006.

Quinones continued to trouble the South African defence, firing narrowly wide from 25 yards in the 20th minute before later striking the post. Brian Gutierrez also came close in the 30th minute, but his effort was blocked, while Williams produced another crucial save five minutes later. South Africa’s best opportunity of the half came through Lyle Foster, whose header failed to find the target.

Mexico entered the break deservedly ahead after dominating possession, creating 10 shots and recording 11 touches inside the opposition penalty area.

South Africa’s task became significantly harder five minutes into the second half when Sithole received a straight red card for a foul on Gutierrez just outside the penalty area, reducing his side to 10 men.

Mexico continued to press and doubled their advantage in the 67th minute through veteran striker Raul Jimenez. The move began with Quinones finding Roberto Alvarado, whose delivery reached the 35-year-old forward, who powered a bullet header past Williams to score in his fourth World Cup appearance.

Earlier in the second half, 17-year-old Gilberto Mora, the youngest player at this World Cup, was introduced in place of Gutierrez.

Jimenez later appealed for a penalty after going down following contact from Sibisi inside the box, but the referee dismissed the claims and instead cautioned the South African defender.

Quinones, one of Mexico’s standout performers, was substituted in the 79th minute for Alexis Vega.

South Africa’s hopes of mounting a comeback ended in the 83rd minute when Zwane was shown a red card, leaving the visitors with just nine players. Mexico were also reduced to 10 men in stoppage time after the game’s third dismissal, but it had little impact on the outcome as the hosts comfortably secured all three points to begin their World Cup campaign on a winning note