2026 World Cup: Why we lost to Mexico – South Africa captain, Williams

South Africa captain Ronwen Williams has urged his teammates not to lose faith in their World Cup campaign despite suffering a 2-0 defeat to Mexico in the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Thursday.

Bafana Bafana endured a difficult evening at a packed Estadio Azteca, conceding an early goal to Julian Quinones before Raul Jimenez sealed victory for the hosts in the second half. South Africa also finished the match with nine men following the dismissals of Sphephelo Sithole and Themba Zwane.

Reflecting on the defeat, Williams admitted that South Africa’s plans were disrupted by the early breakthrough.

“You don’t want to concede in the first 20 minutes, and that’s what exactly happened,” Williams said.

“We wanted to sit up, the nerves, the anxiety, obviously, at this level, you make a mistake, they punish you.”

Despite the setback, the goalkeeper praised his teammates for their determination and fighting spirit throughout the encounter.

“We got into the game, put them on the break, but our final passes let us down,” he said.

“There are lots of lessons to take, I am proud of the boys, the efforts, they didn’t stop, they kept fighting.”

The South African captain believes the team must quickly learn from their mistakes as they prepare for the remainder of their Group A campaign.

“Now is to analyse our mistakes, and not give up, there are still two games to play and we must believe,” Williams added.

The defeat leaves South Africa under pressure ahead of their next group-stage fixture against Czechia, while Mexico moved to the top of Group A after making a winning start on home soil.

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