Every four years, the world comes to a standstill. The reason? The World Cup. Starting this Thursday, the biggest celebration in soccer will kick off, with CONCACAF taking center stage.

Mexico, the United States, and Canada are hosting the tournament, which is expected to be the first of its kind with 48 participating teams, 12 groups, and a total of 104 matches, to be played through July 19, when the grand final takes place in New York.

Today, Azteca Stadium will be decked out in its finest to host the World Cup opening match for the third time in history, as it did in 1970 and 1986.

Mexico will face South Africa in a match that kicks off at 1 p.m.

Earlier, at around 11:30 a.m., the opening ceremony will begin, featuring various artistic, cultural, and, above all, musical performances.

FIFA confirmed that Maná, Alejandro Fernández, Belinda, Los Ángeles Azules, J Balvin alongside Ryan Castro, Lila Downs, Danny Ocean, and South African singer Tyla will take the stage.

Shakira will also be present, performing the official World Cup song “Dai Dai” alongside Nigerian artist Burna Boy.

The World Cup

The tournament features 12 groups of four teams. The format is round-robin, with the top two teams from each group advancing, as well as the eight best third-place finishers, who will play in the round of 32.

Starting on the 24th of this month, when the third matchday of the group stage kicks off, six matches will be played each day through June 27.

Thirty-two teams will remain in the tournament, while 16 will be eliminated.

The Favorites

The World Cup always has its favorites to win the title, and they’re the usual suspects: powerhouse teams boasting world-class players.

For this tournament, France stands out as a title contender, as does Spain, with other teams like Germany, Argentina, Brazil, and Portugal trailing behind them.

This will be the final World Cup for Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo; an era is coming to an end in which those considered the world’s best players alongside Pelé and Maradona aim to bid farewell with even greater glory.

Both the Argentine and the Portuguese will etch their names in history as the players with the most World Cup appearances, with six, a record that will be joined by Mexican goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, although he did not play in 2006 and is unlikely to see action in the tournament kicking off this Thursday.

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