Word Cup: Four Distinct Goal Scorers at Iconic Estadio Azteca after World Cup Opening Match
The first game of the 104 matches to be played during the 23rd edition of the World Cup kicked off at Mexico City’s legendary Estadio Azteca.
The biggest stadium in Latin America, Estadio Azteca, according to facts coming out of the archives of football’s governing body, FIFA, meant that three opening games during a World Cup have been honoured at the stadium.
The first World Cup opening game at the Estadio Azteca took place on the 31st of May, 1970, between Mexico and the Soviet Union in the 1970 World Cup, the 10th edition and the first time the tournament was hosted by a country outside of Europe and South America.
The second World Cup opener at Estadio Azteca took place on May 31, 1986, when Mexico hosted for the second time with a match between Bulgaria and Italy, kicking off the thirteenth edition of the tournament.
Lastly, the third game, held at the canonical football arena with 87,523 seating capacities at Coyoacán, Mexico City, was the opener of the World Cup, United ‘2026, between Mexico and South Africa on Thursday.
At the sound of Wilton Sampaio’s final whistle last Thursday at the Estadio Azteca, a World Cup opening match was won for the first time in the competition’s history.
The editorial team for Opemsuo Radio’s World Cup Diaries can confirm that four different players scored goals in the opening game held at Mexico’s first stadium, which was built on May 29, 1966.
Alessandro Altobelli, a prolific Italian striker, scored the opening goal of the World Cup at Estadio Azteca in the 44th minute against Bulgaria. The current Coppa Italia top scorer played an important role in Italy’s World Cup victory in 1982.
Nasko Sirakov, a Bulgarian striker, is the second player to have scored at the Estadio Azteca. He got the equaliser against Italy in the 88th minute to settle for a 1:1 draw in the particular game.
The only Mexican players to have scored at the Azteca Arena are Raúl Jiménez of Wolverhampton Wanderers and Julián Quiñones of Al-Qadsiah in the Saudi Pro League, who are the third and fourth players, respectively.
The facts being sacred at the World Cup indicate that a total of three opening games have been played at the Estadio Azteca, with four different players having scored, being an Italian, a Bulgarian and two Mexicans.
