World Cup 2026 Kicks Off Today: Azteca Opens, Canada Awaits

The 2026 FIFA World Cup begins today, June 11, as Mexico and South Africa meet at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City for the tournament's Group A opener. Kickoff is at 3:00 p.m. EDT, with FOX carrying the English-language broadcast and Telemundo handling the Spanish feed. For Canadians watching from home or from fan zones in Toronto and Vancouver, this is the moment the calendar has been building toward, and it arrives just 24 hours before Canada takes the pitch itself.

Azteca Writes History Again

The Estadio Azteca will host its 20th World Cup match today, more than any other stadium in tournament history. Mexico enters the opener unbeaten in seven World Cup matches played on that pitch, with five wins and two draws dating back to 1970. The 87,500-capacity venue becomes the first stadium to host the opening match of three different World Cups, having done so in 1970, 1986, and now 2026. Mexico also becomes the first nation to host the men's World Cup on three separate occasions, a distinction that carries both pride and pressure into tonight's match.

This specific fixture carries an added layer of symmetry: Mexico and South Africa played out a 1-1 draw in Johannesburg on June 11, 2010, making this the first repeated opening fixture in World Cup history. Javier Aguirre, 66, takes charge for his third World Cup as Mexico's manager, while Hugo Broos, 74, leads South Africa. Mexico's goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, 40, could make his sixth World Cup appearance, and 17-year-old Gilberto Mora is listed as the tournament's youngest player in the squad. Edson Álvarez, the 2025 Gold Cup best player, captains the side, while Oswin Appollis is South Africa's most dangerous creative outlet after contributing more goals than any other Bafana Bafana player during qualifying.

For the road to 2026, this matters because the round of 32 is new to the World Cup, and readers who internalized the 32-team bracket need to recalibrate what finishing first versus second actually buys in a field of 48. Group A's result today sets an early tone for the bracket geometry that will ripple through the entire tournament.

Canada Watches, Then Plays

Canadians will watch today's opener knowing their own tournament begins at BMO Field in Toronto on June 12, when Jesse Marsch's side faces Bosnia-Herzegovina at 3:00 p.m. EDT. Canada is drawn in Group B alongside Bosnia, Qatar, and Switzerland, with all three of Canada's group stage matches detailed on the tournament schedule. The national team's two host cities, Toronto and Vancouver, together host 13 matches across the group stage and knockout rounds, and BC Place in Vancouver will see Canada play twice, against Qatar on June 18 and against Switzerland on June 24.

For fans planning to follow Canada through both venues, the complete Vancouver World Cup 2026 guide covers BC Place matchdays, the fan experience around the stadium, and what the city has lined up around Canada's fixtures. With the tournament now live, those plans are no longer hypothetical. Anyone who has not yet sorted out how they will watch Canada's three group stage matches should lock in a broadcast plan before Thursday's 3 p.m. EDT kickoff, as this tournament offers an unusual density of meaningful fixtures from the first day.

Davies' Race Against the Clock

The most-watched fitness story heading into Canada's opener centres on captain Alphonso Davies, who sustained a left hamstring injury on May 6 during Bayern Munich's UEFA Champions League semifinal against Paris Saint-Germain. Jesse Marsch has signalled Davies is unlikely to feature against Bosnia on June 12, with a return target of June 18 against Qatar. Davies himself spoke to the difficulty of the past year, saying "Mentally, it was very draining, suffering these injuries," according to Bundesliga.com. He left open the possibility of surprising everyone, adding, "Anything is possible in life. For me, it depends on how the recovery is going, how these next few days or this week leading up to the game goes" (Bundesliga.com). Canada's squad of 26 averaged just 25 years of age when Marsch named it, and the depth at left back and in the attacking third will be tested early, whether Davies plays or not. Jonathan David and Tajon Buchanan carry the primary attacking responsibility while the captain's recovery continues behind closed doors.

The Wait Is Over

The opening whistle at Azteca this afternoon marks the moment every host-nation fan has been mentally rehearsing since Canada's co-hosting role was confirmed. Canada's two World Cup venues, BMO Field and BC Place, have been prepared for this tournament across years of infrastructure investment, and the return will be measured not just in goals but in what this month means for football's footprint in the country. As Mexico and South Africa write the first chapter of the 2026 World Cup at Azteca tonight, Canada has exactly one day to finish preparing its own.

Sources

• Mexico hosts South Africa in FIFA World Cup opener, CONCACAF
• World Cup 2026: Mexico vs South Africa, ESPN
• Alphonso Davies provides World Cup fitness update, Bundesliga.com
• Alphonso Davies injury update ahead of Canada's World Cup debut, World Soccer Talk
• FIFA World Cup 2026: Schedule, teams, venues, The Globe and Mail
• Canada vs Bosnia-Herzegovina: team news and kickoff details, ESPN