FIFA World Cup 2026 First Goal: The FIFA World Cup 2026 got its first historic moment inside a packed Estadio Azteca as Mexico forward Julian Quinones opened the scoring against South Africa in the tournament curtain-raiser. With the hosts looking to make a fast start in front of their supporters at home, Quinones capitalised on a defensive mistake and calmly found the net, nutmegging the South African goalkeeper to become the first goalscorer of the expanded 48-team tournament. Check it out:
The strike handed Mexico an early advantage and sparked wild celebrations around the stadium. For Quinones, it was a goal that etched his name into World Cup history from the very first night of the competition.
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Quinones' early goal gave Mexico complete control of the momentum, with the hosts enjoying the majority of possession and dictating play for long stretches of the match.
South Africa found it difficult to establish any rhythm and rarely threatened Mexico's defence during the contest.
While the final score read 2-0, Mexico's dominance throughout the evening suggested an even larger margin could have been possible.
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Red Cards Compound South Africa's Problems
The visitors' uphill battle became even steeper when Siphephelo Sithole received a straight red card in the second-half after bringing down the last attacking player outside the penalty area.
With a numerical advantage, Mexico continued to push forward in search of a second goal and eventually found one through experienced striker Raul Jimenez. The veteran forward guided a close-range header from a perfectly-weighted cross into the net to double the lead.
Things went from bad to worse for South Africa later on. Following a VAR review, referee officials upgraded a challenge by Themba Zwane to a straight red card after determining it constituted violent conduct.
Reduced to nine men, South Africa had little chance of mounting a comeback as Mexico comfortably saw out the contest. For the hosts, it was the perfect start to their FIFA World Cup journey, while Quinones secured a place in tournament history with a goal that will be remembered for years to come.