Mexico vs. South Africa: Three key takeaways from a boisterous World Cup opener

The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicked off on Thursday, June 11 in Mexico City.

Host nation Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 in front of a raucous crowd to begin its tournament with a win. Julian Quinones opened the scoring in the ninth minute, and Raul Jimenez doubled the lead in the 67th.

The scoreline was augmented by a frankly unbelievable red card tally — three separate players, two for South Africa and one for Mexico, were sent off before the match was through. It was the highest red card tally in the history of World Cup openers.

Here are three key takeaways from the eventful opening match of the 2026 World Cup.

Brian Gutierrez's gamble paid off

Illinois-born winger Brian Gutierrez was a U.S. Men's National Team prospect as recently as January 2025. He played a part in both of the team's unofficial matches against Venezuela and Costa Rica in that window — you may remember those as the matches where Diego Luna broke his nose — but fell out of favor with coach Mauricio Pochettino over the spring.

Gutierrez wasn't having it. He had options — he was eligible for the Mexican national team through his parents — and he decided to explore them. Official meetings with Mexico coach Javier Aguirre led to Gutierrez making a one-time switch over to the Mexico national team, and the rest, as they say, is history.

When Gutierrez publicized his decision in November 2025, many American fans derided him for thinking he could break into El Tri when he'd struggled to break into the USMNT. They're not laughing anymore. Gutierrez started Mexico's World Cup opener and made the play that reduced South Africa to 10 men in the second half. He was irrepressible, aggressive and every inch the playmaker that Mexico so desperately needed in this match.

Raul Jimenez used his head

Wolves striker Raul Jimenez is lucky to be alive, let alone playing on the World Cup Stage. He fractured his skull in a Premier League match in 2021 after colliding with David Luis on a corner, and his initial prognosis was bleak. The injury forced Jimenez into emergency life-saving surgery and kept him off the field for well over nine months.

Seeing Jimenez back with the national team, still proudly wearing his concussion headband for safety, is heartwarming; seeing him scoring a crucial goal with his head is downright emotional. Few players have fought harder for their careers than Jimenez did after that horror injury, but he is back in a big way.