News Focus
- South Africa will face Mexico in the opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup
- The fixture mirrors the 2010 World Cup opener when South Africa hosted the tournament
- Captain Ronwen Williams lost his older brother Marvin in a car accident two months before the 2010 event
- The Mamelodi Sundowns goalkeeper almost quit football at age 18 following the family tragedy
- Coach Hugo Broos appointed Williams as captain in 2021 and led the team to qualify for the finals
South Africa captain Ronwen Williams will think of his late brother when he leads the team against Mexico in the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The match will take place in Mexico City and marks the start of the tournament.
The game brings back memories of the 2010 World Cup. Sixteen years ago, South Africa hosted the competition and played Mexico in the first match. Now South Africa will face Mexico again in the opening game.
This moment is very special for Williams. His older brother Marvin died in a car crash two months before the 2010 World Cup started. Williams was only 18 years old at that time. He almost stopped playing football because of the sad news.
“My brother believed in me so much,” Williams told the BBC World Service. “To lead my country in the first game, I cannot explain my feelings. I get cold feelings when I think about it at night.”
Williams plays for Mamelodi Sundowns. He has become one of the best goalkeepers in Africa under coach Hugo Broos. The Belgian coach won the Africa Cup of Nations with Cameroon in 2017. He started coaching South Africa in 2021 and made Williams the captain straight away. He helped the team finish third at the 2023 AFCON.
Williams says Broos has brought the country together again. “Two or three years ago, fans did not want to watch us,” he said. “Now everyone supports us. The coach has brought belief back to South Africa.”
South Africa beat Nigeria to win their qualifying group. This will be their fourth World Cup. But Williams knows the team must stay calm. Group A also has Czech Republic and South Korea.
“We need to be realistic,” he said. “The most important thing is to get out of the group. Can we compete with these teams? That is what we must ask ourselves.”
The 34-year-old is famous for saving penalties. At the 2023 AFCON, he saved four penalties in one game against Cape Verde. He saved two more in the match for third place against DR Congo. He won the African Goalkeeper of the Year award in 2024 because of these saves.
Some people say goalkeepers cannot be good captains because they stand far from the other players. Williams does not agree. “You are the glue for the team,” he explained. “I have always been a leader, even when I played as a young boy. I love this responsibility.”
South Africa has never gone past the group stage at a World Cup. If they reach the last 32 this time, it will be a big success for the country. Williams will walk out at the Estadio Azteca in front of 73,000 fans. He will carry the hopes of his country and the memory of his brother.