Mexico opened the World Cup with a dominant 2-0 win over South Africa in front of a boisterous home crowd at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium. Julián Quiñones scored the first goal of the World Cup in the ninth minute, booting a cross through the legs of South Africa goalkeeper Ronwen Williams.
US and Canada Prepare for Openers
The United States and Canada both get their opportunity for a fast start in front of their respective home countries on Friday. The US will face Paraguay, while Canada takes on Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The US has advanced to the knockout round in four of the last six World Cups it has played, but hasn’t been able to get past the quarterfinals. Coach Mauricio Pochettino was hired in 2024 after successful stints at several European clubs.
Canada seeks its first World Cup win when it faces Bosnia-Herzegovina on Friday after going 0-3 in both 1986 and 2022. Forward Jonathan David — who plays for Italian club Juventus — is the country’s career scoring leader with 39 goals in 77 matches.
FIFA President Defends World Cup Ticket Prices
FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended World Cup ticket prices, saying ‘if we do something wrong, then probably everyone selling tickets in North America is doing something wrong.’ FIFA priced tickets starting at $140 for group-stage games, but regular seats for the July 19 final outside New York were listed at up to $8,680 and hospitality seats at up to $73,200.
Original reporting: KOCO Sports (Oklahoma City) — read the source article.
