Today, the World Cup kicks off in Mexico — the first tournament in history with the participation of 48 national teams. The opening matches will be Mexico vs. South Africa and South Korea vs. Czech Republic.
World football is opening a new chapter in its history. On Thursday, the 2026 World Cup will kick off in Mexico — the first tournament in which 48 teams will compete in the final stage.
The opening match will take place in Mexico City, where one of the hosts, the Mexican national team, will face South Africa. The game will start at 22:00 Latvian time (broadcast on Go3 Sport).
For the Mexicans, this championship will be their ninth in a row. The hosts are entering the tournament in good form: in eight friendly matches this year, the team has won six times and drawn twice.
One of the key figures of the team may be 40-year-old goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, who is set to play in his sixth World Cup. The squad also includes forwards Raul Jimenez and Santiago Gimenez, while the attention of fans is drawn to 17-year-old midfielder Hilberto Mora — the youngest player on the team.
The South African team returns to the World Cup for the first time since 2010. The team secured its place in the tournament through African qualification, but preparation for the trip to Mexico has been challenging: some players and staff faced visa issues.
The last meeting between Mexico and South Africa at the World Cup took place in 2010 and ended in a draw — 1:1.
The second match of the day will be held in Guadalajara. South Korea will play against the Czech Republic (on Friday at 5:00 AM Latvian time). This is the Czech Republic's first participation in the World Cup in the last two decades.
The South Koreans qualified for the World Cup without a single defeat and will participate in the tournament for the 11th consecutive time. The team will once again be led by its leader and captain Son Heung-min, who will be playing in his fourth World Cup.
In the Czech Republic squad, the main star is considered to be forward Patrik Schick, who scored 22 goals for Bayer Leverkusen in the past season.
What is important to know: this World Cup will be the largest in football history. Instead of the usual 32 teams, 48 national teams will participate in the tournament, and matches will take place in three countries — Mexico, the USA, and Canada.
The teams are divided into 12 groups. Not only the top two teams from each group will advance to the playoffs, but also the eight best teams that finish in third place.
The group stage will conclude on June 27, after which knockout matches will begin. The World Cup final will take place on July 19.
The reigning world champion remains Argentina, which won the tournament in Qatar in 2022 by defeating France in a dramatic penalty shootout.
