South Africa plans an early arrival in Mexico to adjust for the World Cup opener

South Africa plans to arrive in Mexico almost a fortnight before the opening match of the World Cup to acclimatize to the altitude, coach Hugo Broos said. Co-host Mexico opens the tournament on June 11 with a Group A match against South Africa at Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium, which is 2,200 meters above sea level.

While most South African players are based at clubs in Johannesburg, which has an altitude of 1,753 metres, Broos says his side need time to adapt to conditions in Mexico before the opening match.

The team will travel to their base in Pachuca, which is about 200 meters higher than Mexico City, on May 30. The city is less than 100 km from Mexico City.

“It will be difficult to train 100 percent in the first days because of the altitude, so we will do that in the second week,” Broos said in a radio interview.

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South Africa plans to play Nicaragua at home in a friendly on May 29, although this has not been confirmed, and is negotiating to get Puerto Rico as a warm-up for a second international scrimmage in Pachuca. In the other World Cup group matches, South Africa will meet the Czech Republic in Atlanta on June 18 and South Korea in Monterrey on June 24, seeking to progress past the first round for the first time in its fourth World Cup appearance.

«It’s not an easy group for us. First of all, we will meet the host in the opening match at the Azteca Stadium, and it will be very difficult for us there,» Broos said earlier this year. But the veteran coach, who played for semi-finalists Belgium at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, also previously predicted that his team could cause some unrest during the tournament, which is also being played in Canada and the US.

South Africa and Mexico drew 1-1 at Soccer City in Johannesburg in the opening match of the 2010 World Cup, which South Africa hosted.

Published on May 1, 2026