Shakira and Burna Boy open World Cup 2026 at Azteca as Mexico face South Africa

World Cup 2026 got underway at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City on Thursday, with Shakira and Burna Boy headlining the tournament’s opening ceremony before co-hosts Mexico faced South Africa in the first match of Group A.

The two artists performed the official World Cup song, Dai Dai, in the first of three opening ceremonies spread across the tournament’s three host nations. Italian producer Marco Balich, who also orchestrated the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics ceremony earlier this year, oversaw the spectacle. Rather than a Super Bowl-style halftime show, the event blended welcoming speeches, a parade of flags, the presentation of the match ball, and around 30 minutes of live music. “It’s a celebration of football, Fifa and the fact that, thanks to soccer, people get together in peace and harmony,” Balich said.

The United States and Canada are each staging their own opening ceremonies on the following day, making this the first World Cup to feature three separate curtain-raising events — a consequence of the tournament being co-hosted across an entire continent for the first time.

The fixture itself carries historical weight. When South Africa hosted the 2010 World Cup, this exact pairing opened proceedings in Johannesburg: Siphiwe Tshabalala put the hosts ahead in the 55th minute before Rafael Marquez equalised in the 79th to earn Mexico a 1-1 draw.

South Africa return to the World Cup for the first time since that tournament, arriving as Group A underdogs. Mexico, managed by Javier Aguirre, carry the weight of a home nation’s expectations and the hope of a deep run on familiar soil. Azteca, one of football’s most storied venues, provides the backdrop for both the pageantry and the pressure.