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As Mexico and Bafana Bafana get this year’s World Cup underway at Mexico City’s iconic Estadio Azteca on Thursday in what will be a replica of the 2010 global showpiece’s opener in Johannesburg, we outline some key and intriguing facts about this titanic clash.
- A crowd of over 85,000 excited spectators is expected to fill the iconic Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. The stadium has a capacity of 87,523.
- The game is projected to draw a historic global television and streaming audience of between 1.1 billion and 1.5 billion live viewers. If these projections are met, it will become the most-watched opening event in television history.
- The Mexican government declared June 11 a public holiday with schools closed and employers encouraged to allow remote work.
- Mexico are unbeaten in their last eight games, with six victories and two draws, while Bafana are winless in their last five fixtures, with three draws and two defeats.
- Defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi, 20, is the youngest squad member for Bafana, while 17-year-old midfielder Gilberto Mora is Mexico’s youngest player.
- Famous goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, 40, is Mexico’s oldest player, while 36-year-old playmaker Themba Zwane is the most senior player in the Bafana squad.
- Mexico and Bafana have faced each other four times previously, with Mexico holding a slight edge in the head-to-head record with two wins to SA’s one and one draw.
Sowetan
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