Raúl Jiménez finally got the World Cup moment he had been chasing for years, scoring Mexico’s first goal in a 1-0 opener against South Africa on June 11, 2026. The long-time Fulham and Wolves forward struck in the 67th minute in Mexico City, and Mexico went on to win its first match of the 2026 tournament.
The goal came in the opening match of a World Cup that arrived after 1,271 days without one, with Mexico and South Africa kicking off at 3 p.m. ET, 1 p.m. local time. Jiménez, 35 goals in 102 caps for Mexico, had been the focus for anyone tracking the game’s early swing, and he delivered the breakthrough that turned a tight opener in Mexico’s favor.
He was active long before the finish. Jiménez took five shots, put three on target and kept pressing South Africa’s back line until he was replaced in the 76th minute by Erik Lira. By then, Mexico were already carrying the edge from his strike, and the opener had taken on the feel of a match decided by the player Mexico leaned on most.
South Africa’s discipline unraveled as the game went on. Sithole was sent off in the 50th minute for bringing down Brian Gutiérrez on the edge of the penalty box, then Themba Zwane followed in the 84th minute after a VAR review. Mexico later had its own dismissal in stoppage time, when César Montes was shown red in the 90th minute plus two for bringing down Mudau, a late flashpoint that complicated an otherwise clean result.
Mexico went in 1-0 at halftime and held the lead to open Group A with three points, but Montes’ suspension now carries over into the next group match against Korea Republic. For Jiménez, the larger question is whether this was the first of more World Cup goals or simply the one that finally put his name in the tournament record book.
