Jun 2026 · Football · World Cup Group Stage
Mexico vs South Africa: Two goals, three reds
The 2026 World Cup opened at the Estadio Azteca with co-hosts Mexico against South Africa, a raucous home crowd willing El Tri to set the tone for the tournament.
What followed was equal parts dominant and chaotic: a comfortable Mexican win wrapped around three red cards. Let's trace how the game actually flowed.
'%20stroke='%23FFF'%20stroke-width='2'%3e%3ccircle%20cx='80.5'%20cy='119.5'%20r='45.5'/%3e%3cpath%20fill='%23B5B5B5'%20d='M1%201h99v237H1z'/%3e%3cpath%20fill='%23EFEFEF'%20d='M1%201h99v237H1z'/%3e%3cpath%20d='M1%2070h30v97H1z'/%3e%3c/g%3e%3cg%20transform='rotate(-180%20285.5%20155)'%20stroke='%23FFF'%20stroke-width='2'%3e%3ccircle%20cx='80.5'%20cy='119.5'%20r='45.5'/%3e%3cpath%20fill='%23EFEFEF'%20d='M1%201h99v237H1z'/%3e%3cpath%20d='M1%2070h30v97H1z'/%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/svg%3e)
Reading the Graphic
The graphic captures a passage of play, here minutes 26 to 36 of the match.
The area chart above the pitch shows the distribution of touches along the length of the field.
The pitch shows shots. Hover/tap on a shot for more info including Expected Goals (xG) value.
Scroll for the walkthrough, or explore yourself.
Mexico come flying out of the blocks. Inside the opening quarter-hour they rattle off several efforts, camping in the South African half.
At 9', Julián Quiñones gets on the end of the pressure and finishes to make it 1-0. The xG is already lopsided.
South Africa steady themselves and see a little more of the ball, but the clear chances stay at the other end. Their best looks are half-chances from set pieces.
Half Time: MEX 1-0 RSA.
The second half opens the way the first did, with Mexico probing. Both keepers stay busy as the tempo lifts.
At 66', Raúl Jiménez converts the game's biggest chance (0.51 xG) to double the lead and put the result beyond doubt.
With the game won, it turns spicy. Three red cards punctuate the closing stretch as tempers fray, but the scoreline holds.
Mexico finish with roughly 1.46 xG to South Africa's 0.07 — a fair reflection of a night they controlled throughout.
Full Time: MEX 2-0 RSA.
Explore Yourself
Drag the handles to frame any period, grab the band to slide it around, or press play to roll a window through the match.
Data Sources: WhoScored (Opta events), FotMob (xG)
Note 1: Injury time events have been wrapped into the last minute of that half/period of extra time.
Note 2: The touch distribution area chart has been constructed by dividing the length of the field into 9 bins and smoothing the resulting histogram with a cubic basis spline.