Before a single boot touched the pitch, the sky above Mexico City stole the show. Hundreds of drones climbed into the night in a breathtaking NovaSkyStories display, painting light above the cathedral of football known to the world as Estadio Azteca. The formation shifted and moved in orchestrated waves, drawing gasps from the tens of thousands gathered outside and millions more watching on screens across the globe. It was a fitting prologue.

This is no ordinary tournament. The 2026 FIFA World Cup, the largest in the competition’s history, officially begins today, June 11, with an expanded field of 48 nations spread across 16 cities and three co-host countries: Mexico, the United States, and Canada. The opening ceremony set the atmosphere with colour, scale, and unmistakable ambition. From the drone formations above to the roar building inside the 87,000-seat arena, the message was clear. Football’s biggest party has come home to North America, and Mexico City is at the centre of it all.

Some venues simply belong to football. Estadio Azteca, officially listed as Mexico City Stadium for this tournament, is one of them. Today, it becomes something no other ground has ever been: the first stadium to host three World Cup opening matches. The Azteca did it first in 1970, when Pelé’s Brazil launched their legendary campaign on this very turf. They repeated the feat in 1986, the year Diego Maradona turned the tournament into his personal stage. Now, 40 years on, the stadium does it again.

Reopened after renovations worth approximately 3.6 billion pesos, the ground looks and feels rebuilt for this moment. The largest stadium in Latin America, it has witnessed the Hand of God, the Goal of the Century, and the tears of a thousand heartbreaks. Each generation adds its own chapter. Today, a new one begins. The burden of that legacy presses down on every player who walks through the tunnel, and it lifts every fan lucky enough to hold a ticket.

For El Tri, the stakes could hardly be higher. Mexico enters the tournament as a co-host for the second time in its history, and the pressure that comes with that status is immense. Coach Javier Aguirre has spent months building a squad capable of finally breaking the notorious “Quinto Partido” curse, the inability to advance past the round of 16 that has haunted Mexican football for decades. Standing opposite them today are South Africa, back at the World Cup for the first time since they hosted it in 2010.

Bafana Bafana arrive as underdogs, but they carry a memory worth celebrating. Sixteen years ago, on June 11, Siphiwe Tshabalala’s stunning opener at Soccer City united a nation and set the 2010 tournament alight. That match ended 1-1, with Mexico equalising through Rafael Márquez. History, it seems, enjoys a sequel. Coach Hugo Broos knows his side faces a brutal challenge at altitude in a hostile arena. Nevertheless, South Africa will not simply step aside. Mexico must earn it.

One figure above all others captures the emotional force of this occasion. Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, now 41 years old, lines up today for his sixth World Cup. It is an important milestone. Few athletes in any sport reach six major tournaments, and fewer still do so as their nation’s first-choice keeper. Under Aguirre’s guidance, Ochoa remains the symbol of El Tri’s stamina and ambition. His presence itself tells the crowd something: this team believes.

The 87,000 voices inside Azteca will be deafening. Mexico City has even declared today a local public holiday, such is the significance of the occasion. From the drone lights glittering above the stadium last night to the anthem vibrating on concrete and steel this afternoon, every element points toward the same conclusion. The 2026 World Cup is here. It is alive. And it begins, as history always seems to, at the Azteca.