World Cup 2026 begins with historic goal from Julian Quinones

Julian Quinones makes history in the world of football by opening the scoreboard during the historic match at the Estadio Azteca in a 2-0 victory for his side over South Africa in their Group G match. Quinones has become the first ever player from CONCACAF to score the opening goal in the World Cup after his performance in the game on Tuesday night.

Certainly, that is a wonderful announcement from one of the players known for his lethal ability inside the box. Before signing up for the championship, Quinones had an awesome time at his club Al Qadsiah, managing to score 33 goals in just 31 games in the league – outscoring even Cristiano Ronaldo of Al Nassr whose tally was 28 goals.

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Quinones sparks celebrations with historic strike

The Estadio Azteca turned into a roaring atmosphere with 80000 fans, and South Africa cracked in just the ninth minute.

Keeper Ronwen Williams tried playing out from the back, but a loose pass forced an error from Sphephelo Sithole. Erik Lira pounced, snatching possession and feeding Julian Quinones. The striker didn't hesitate. From the edge of the box, he drilled a low shot straight through Williams' legs to ignite the stadium.

It was the fastest opening goal at a World Cup since Philipp Lahm’s six-minute strike for Germany in 2006. While France's Lucien Laurent scored the first-ever World Cup goal back in 1930 against Mexico, and Enner Valencia did the honours for Ecuador in 2022, Quinones just wrote a massive chapter of his own.

Mexico defeats South Africa

Quinones stayed a constant menace, even rattling the post, before veteran Raul Jimenez doubled the lead in the 67th minute with a powerful header in his fourth World Cup appearance.

South Africa’s night went from bad to worse. Already chasing the game, Sithole saw red early in the second half. By the 83rd minute, Zwane was also sent off, leaving the visitors stranded with nine men. Mexico lost a player to a red card in stoppage time too, bringing a chaotic match to a total of three ejections.

The 2-0 win keeps Mexico’s absurd streak alive: 22 straight victories against African opposition, with their last defeat coming against this exact South African side way back in the 2005 Gold Cup.

The stadium with the most historical background has been the host of its 20th match during the World Cup; no other stadium has ever hosted as many matches during the World Cup as this one. And Mexico made sure that Estadio Azteca got its due credit. All along, it seemed like Quiñones would never complete his full circle; although he was fast to score even before Cristiano Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia, Quiñones is now the one kicking off the 2026 World Cup.

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FAQs

Q1: Who scored the very first goal of the 2026 FIFA World Cup?

Ans: Julian Quinones scored the opening goal for Mexico in the ninth minute against South Africa.

Q2: What historic milestone did Julian Quinones achieve with his goal?

Ans: He became the first-ever player from the CONCACAF region to score the opening goal of a World Cup.