Pelé and Diego Maradona are reportedly set to be honoured during the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Cup at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
The tribute is planned for Thursday 11 June, ahead of the tournament’s opening match between Mexico and South Africa.
It is a fitting stage for two of football’s most important World Cup figures, given their historic ties to the stadium hosting the event.
Pelé and Maradona tribute planned for Estadio Azteca
Pelé and Diego Maradona are reportedly set to be honoured during the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Cup in Mexico.
The ceremony is scheduled for the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, with FIFA confirming the stadium will host the opening match of the tournament.
The tribute is expected to take place before Mexico face South Africa in the first game of Group A.
This is not a tribute held at a venue with only a loose connection to the two players. The Azteca is one of the few stadiums where the link to both men is direct and clear.
It also gives the opening ceremony a strong football focus before the largest World Cup in history begins across Mexico, the United States and Canada.
Why the Azteca is the right stage for this World Cup moment
Pelé’s connection to the stadium goes back to the 1970 World Cup, when Brazil won the final in Mexico City.
Brazil beat Italy 4-1 at the Azteca to claim the country’s third World Cup, with Pelé part of a team still remembered as one of the great sides in the competition’s history.
Maradona’s link is just as strong. FIFA’s archive of his Mexico 1986 campaign underlines how closely that tournament is tied to his career and Argentina’s second World Cup triumph.
The Azteca also hosted the 1986 final, where Argentina beat West Germany 3-2 to complete Maradona’s defining tournament.
FIFA has also highlighted the stadium’s place in World Cup history, with the Mexico City venue linked again to the 2026 tournament after staging matches in 1970 and 1986.
That is why the reported tribute carries more weight than a routine pre-match ceremony. It connects the start of a new tournament to two players whose greatest World Cup memories are part of the same stadium’s history.
The 2026 World Cup will introduce a wider format and a three-country staging plan, but the opening in Mexico is set to begin with a familiar reference point. Before the new tournament moves forward, the Azteca is expected to look back at Pelé and Maradona.
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