World Cup 2026 First Week: All 10 Scores, Every Story
Ten matches. Thirty-one goals. Three red cards in the opening fixture alone, two of them to South Africa as Mexico kicked off the World Cup with a 2-0 win at Estadio Azteca on Thursday 11 June. Four days later, Germany have already overtaken Brazil as the highest-scoring nation in World Cup history after a 7-1 demolition of Curaçao in Houston.
The 2026 World Cup opened with 10 matches across four days. Mexico, South Korea, Scotland, Australia, Germany, Ivory Coast and Sweden all won. Canada drew Bosnia, Brazil drew Morocco, Netherlands drew Japan. Germany's 7-1 win over Curaçao on Sunday was the standout result of the week.
1. What happened in the World Cup 2026 first week?
Day 1 (11 June) opened at Estadio Azteca. Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 through Julián Quiñones (9') and Raúl Jiménez (67'), in a chaotic game with three red cards. In Guadalajara, South Korea came from behind to beat Czechia 2-1, with Oh Hyeon-Gyu winning it in the 80th after Hwang In-beom's 67th-minute equaliser had cancelled out Ladislav Krejčí's opener.
Day 2 (12 June) was Canada vs Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1-1. Jovo Lukic headed the visitors ahead in the 21st; substitute Cyle Larin rescued the co-hosts in the 78th. Day 3 (13 June) delivered Brazil 1-1 Morocco at MetLife Stadium in front of 80,663 (Ismael Saibari 21', Vinícius Junior 32') and Scotland 1-0 Haiti, John McGinn settling the country's first World Cup match since France 1998.
Day 4 (14 June) carried the weight. Australia 2-0 Türkiye (Nestory Irankunda 27', Connor Metcalfe in the second half). Germany 7-1 Curaçao at NRG Stadium in Houston, six different scorers including a Kai Havertz brace and Felix Nmecha's sixth-minute opener from a Florian Wirtz assist. Ivory Coast 1-0 Ecuador, Amad Diallo with a 90th-minute winner. Netherlands 2-2 Japan, Daichi Kamada heading the equaliser in the 88th after Virgil van Dijk (50') and Crysencio Summerville (64') had twice put the Dutch ahead. Sweden 5-1 Tunisia, two Yasin Ayari long-range strikes plus goals from Alexander Isak, Viktor Gyökeres and Mattias Svanberg.
2. The biggest stories: Germany's seven, Brazil's wake-up call, Australia's shock
Germany's 7-1 was the statement of the week. Six different scorers, the fastest goal of the tournament so far in the sixth minute, and a positional reset that has Julian Nagelsmann's side back among the favourites. England, in Germany's projected knockout path from Group L, watched.
Brazil's 1-1 with Morocco was the story going the other way. Vinícius Junior's 32nd-minute equaliser was a beauty, picked out by Bruno Guimarães and rifled past Yassine Bounou. The rest of the night was Morocco asking questions Carlo Ancelotti has not yet answered. Without Neymar (calf), the Vinícius and Raphinha front line carried but did not break the game open. Signed Vinícius Junior memorabilia is part of the authenticated catalogue at MVPs.
Australia's 2-0 over Türkiye flips a group. Vincenzo Montella's Türkiye were ranked among the dark horses on the back of the Arda Güler and Kenan Yıldız generation. Yıldız came on at half-time. Güler's 57th-minute free-kick was saved by Patrick Beach. Türkiye's 24-year wait turned into a flat 90 minutes.
3. What today and the rest of the week brings
Day 5 (Monday 15 June) is the busiest day of the tournament so far. Spain open against Cape Verde at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta at 5pm BST, with Lamine Yamal expected on the bench. Belgium face Egypt at 8pm BST. Saudi Arabia play Uruguay at 11pm BST. Iran take on New Zealand in the late-late slot.
England's first match arrives on Wednesday 17 June against Croatia. Argentina open on Monday 22 June against Austria. Portugal start on Tuesday 23 June against Uzbekistan. By the end of the next seven days, all 48 teams will have played at least one match.