- West Ham have had two players feature at the World Cup so far
- Edson Alvarez came off the bench for Mexico
- Tomas Soucek started for Czechia
West Ham United had two players feature on the opening day of the 2026 World Cup.
The tournament kicked off in Mexico at the iconic Azteca stadium. Joint host’s Mexico kicked off playing South Africa, who hosted the tournament 16 years ago in 2010.
Edson Alvarez, who spent the season on-loan with Fenerbahce in Turkey, was on the bench for the game. The midfielder would be introduced on the 76th minute to help his country see out the game and get their first points on the board.
Mexico would go on to win the game 2-0 but the game did include three red cards as the tournament got off to a frantic start. Alvarez is expected to leave West Ham this summer, but Raul Jimenez, who scored for Mexico, will be someone the Hammers meet this season, with the forward having just signed for Wolverhampton Wanderers, who were relegated with the Irons.
Also in action was Tomas Soucek and Czechia.
The European nation faced South Korea and took the lead early in the second-half, but could not hold on, losing 2-1 in their first game of the World Cup.
Hammers midfielder Soucek thought he had scored, heading home a free-kick from former West Ham full-back Vladimir Coufal, only for him to be ruled out for offside.
The next Hammer who could be in action is Crysencio Summerville, when the Netherlands take on Japan on Sunday evening.
