Mexico, Canada and USA had backing of home supporters in opening fixtures they will generally be pleased with
The opening days of the 2026 World Cup have produced some early themes worth exploring. Could these shape the weeks ahead? Probably. Is it too early to say? Definitely.
Having said that, Fulltime Herald explores some of the talking points with the tournament in full flow now that games have been kicked off in all three host countries.
So four games played, three of them involving the three host countries. The schedule had to be set so that each country, namely Mexico, Canada and USA, could kick off the fixtures before any other side could play in their country. South Korea v Czechia is the other game, and that was played in Mexico following the opening game between Mexico and South Africa.
The first games show that home advantage still matters. Mexico began the tournament with a comfortable 2-0 victory over South Africa, backed by their home supporters at the Estadio Azteca, a ground that saw more than 80,000 fans packed into the stadium as Julian Quinones and Raul Jimenez scored the first goals of the competition. In contrast South Africa had much fewer fans at the stadium.
Third time’s a charm 🤩
Mexico hosts the @FIFAWorldCup for a record-breaking third time 🙌🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/YElCcVW2Ml
— FIFA (@FIFAcom) June 11, 2026
It is worth noting an interesting detail about the setting. The Azteca sits more than 7,000 feet above sea level, making it the highest venue at the tournament. Playing at high altitudes require some physical adaptation because there is less oxygen due to thinner air. This could cause a team not used to such conditions to become breathless and tire quickly.
South Africa attempted to prepare through high-altitude training before the tournament, but they struggled to match Mexico’s intensity and movement before earning two red cards that put the game beyond them.
In the other fixture, an unadventurous Bosnia side scored first and Canada, playing in Toronto, mostly camped in the European side’s half for the rest of the game, before Cyle Larin drew inspiration from the crowd two minutes after coming on as a sub and fired in the equaliser.
Afterwards, Bosnia’s coach Sergej Barbarez said: “We were playing against a host, their opening match, a full stadium, 80% Canadian supporters, it was a huge pressure and a huge compliment that my team did not succumb.”
Let's go, @FIFAWorldCup 2026! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/y6ptWex7Ih
— FIFA (@FIFAcom) June 11, 2026
In the third game at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, 70,492 fans showed up, most of them to back USA as they compete on home soil. The stadium was humming and just seven minutes in, Damian Bobadilla stuck his foot out to smash into his own net and USA were ahead.
What followed was a rout as Folarin Balogun scored twice in the first half, before Giovanni Reyna capped off a fine 4-1 victory with a delicious goal in stoppage time.
