Mexico is facing a major social movement before the opening match of the 2026 World Cup this Thursday against South Africa (9 p.m. French time). If President Claudia Sheinbaum seems calm, the army came to reinforce the security system before the start of the World Cup.
The eyes of the football world will be on Mexico this Thursday for the opening match of the 2026 World Cup between host Mexico and South Africa (9 p.m. French time). If El Tri is favorite in the match against Bafana Bafana, this inaugural poster at the Azteca stadium constitutes a real challenge for an entire country. In the grip of major social tensions and in particular major demonstrations by the main teachers’ union, Mexico City serves as the focus of the current crisis.
But facing the press this Wednesday, on the eve of the first duel of the World Cup, President Claudia Sheinbaum called for calm and swept away doubts. “Everything is under control”, even assured the Mexican leader during a press conference in order to allay fears on the sidelines of the start of the summer competition.
“There is no problem”
And if the president planned to attend the first match of the selection from a fan zone in the capital, she wanted to reassure about the conditions of access to the legendary enclosure where the match against South Africa will take place.
“We will be able to go to the stadium and it will be a very beautiful opening ceremony,” insisted Claudia Sheinbaum according to comments relayed by AFP. “[…] There is no problem, everyone who has a ticket will be able to arrive.”
L’armée au cÅ“ur du dispositif sans précédent à Mexico City
Behind this desire to show that everything is under control, the president of Mexico also seeks to salute the success of the Kukulcan plan (the name refers to the Mayan divinity of the feathered serpent). Thus, for several days with the dual focus of tensions linked to social protest by teachers and cartels, the Mexican government has been able to measure the effectiveness of its unprecedented security system.
As RMC Sport described it in March, the Kukulcan plan provides for the reinforcement of the army to ensure security on the sidelines of the World Cup.
It’s impossible not to see him in the streets of Mexico City before the long-awaited opening match of the 2026 World Cup. Many police and military personnel are mobilized around the main monuments such as the Angel of Independence or major hotels.
Military vehicles are visible on the route from the center to Azteca Stadium. The objective of this extraordinary mobilization will be in particular to ensure a significant security perimeter this Thursday for the inaugural duel (more than 1.5 km away) to prevent demonstrators from approaching the enclosure and disrupting the celebrations linked to the World Cup.
