Major World Cup stadium concerns exposed in shocking footage with hole in floor and cardboard signs weeks from tournament

Mexico kick off the 2026 FIFA World Cup taking on South Africa at Estadio Azteca.

Over 80,000 fans will cram into the iconic arena, which will become the only stadium ever to host matches at three World Cups after also taking part in 1970 and 1986.

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‘The Colossus of Santa Ursula’ — renamed Mexico City Stadium for the tournament — will host all of Mexico’s group matches, as well as two knockout ties.

But reports from test events, including a friendly against Portugal and Cruz Azul games have raised major concerns about whether the stadium, which was a construction site in February, will be ready.

One recent viral video shows a hole in the bottom of a stand through which fans can be seen on the concourse below.

The caption, in Spanish, reads: “There is a hole in the Azteca stands. A pit into the void.”

Another video shows a comically non-league sign for the toilets which is crudely drawn on a piece of cardboard and stuck to the wall.

“Less than a month until the World Cup JAJAJAJAJA let’s go,” reads the caption.

Mexico’s game against South Africa is in just 25 days where the eyes of the world will be on the country.

Stadium DB listed the problems affecting Estadio Azteca, revealing that some exclusive pitchside seats had to be ripped up because views were obscured by advertising boards and photographers.

Views in the upper tiers were also slammed and there were reports of pieces of concrete falling from beneath seats in a Liga MX match.

Mexico was announced as a host alongside Canada and the USA in 2018, but renovations to the national stadium didn’t begin until 2024.

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Mexico struggling on and off field

El Tri’s warm-up has been far from serene with the government deciding to end school terms early before abandoning the decision amid complaints from parents.

The Mexican Football Federation even threatened to ban its own players from the tournament in an extraordinary club vs country row.

A pre-World Cup training camp was set up outside FIFA‘s international windows while Mexican clubs had major fixtures and when some owners tried to pull out their homegrown stars, bosses were forced into action.

According to Felipe Cardenas, senior writer for The Athletic, who made an appearance on talkSPORT’s brand new soccer show The S* Word, the threat was very real.

“The players have never pushed back,” Cardenas exclusively told talkSPORT. “The players want to be with the national team. They want to represent their country. This is the biggest World Cup perhaps in the history of North America, and they want to be there.

“The problem is that it not being a FIFA window, it was almost asking everyone to just accept that the most important thing right now in Mexico is the World Cup. We’re all rowing in the same direction. This is for World Cup glory.

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“[Mexico manager] Javier Aguirre telling everyone like, ‘We want players in now and really early because we’re working on camaraderie. We want to get together. We want to avoid the noise. We want to push back against the norms. We’re not a status quo national team anymore.'”

Mexico suffered a humiliating early exit in 2026 and the country is desperate to avoid a repeat. With less than a month to get ready, there is work to be done on and off the field.

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