2026 World Cup: all the men of the match from the first day of the group stage

Goal scorers, playmakers, decisive goalkeepers, or true leaders of their teams—several players shone as their nations made their debut in the 2026 World Cup. Let’s take a look back at all the Man of the Match trophies awarded by FIFA.

The opening day of the 2026 World Cup delivered a host of standout individual performances across the United States, Canada, and Mexico. After each game, FIFA named the players who received the official Man of the Match trophy. Here is the complete list of the 24 players honored.

See also: 2026 World Cup: the full report on the ten African nations after the first day

Group A

• Julián Quiñones (Mexico) — vs. South Africa (2-0)
• Hwang In-beom (South Korea) — vs. Czech Republic (2-1)

Group B

• Ismaël Koné (Canada) — vs. Bosnia and Herzegovina (1-1)
• Mahmoud Abunada (Qatar) — vs. Switzerland (1-1)

Group C

• Vinícius Júnior (Brazil) — vs. Morocco (1-1)
• John McGinn (Scotland) — vs. Haiti (1-0)

Group D

• Folarin Balogun (United States) — vs. Paraguay (4-1)
• Nestory Irankunda (Australia) — vs. Turkey (2-0)

Group E

• Kai Havertz (Germany) — vs. Curaçao (7-1)
• Yan Diomande (Ivory Coast) — vs. Ecuador (1-0)

Group F

• Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands) — vs. Japan (2-2)
• Alexander Isak (Sweden) — vs. Tunisia (5-1)

Group G

• Emam Ashour (Egypt) — vs. Belgium (1-1)
• Ramin Rezaeian (Iran) — vs. New Zealand (2-2)

Group H

• Federico Valverde (Uruguay) — vs. Saudi Arabia (1-1)
• Vozinha (Cape Verde) — vs. Spain (0-0)

Group I

• Michael Olise (France) — vs. Senegal (3-1)
• Erling Haaland (Norway) — vs. Iraq (4-1)

Group J

• Lionel Messi (Argentina) — vs. Algeria (3-0)
• Ali Olwan (Jordan) — vs. Austria (lost 3-1)

Group K

• João Neves (Portugal) — vs. DR Congo (1-1)
• Luis Díaz (Colombia) — vs. Uzbekistan (3-1)

Group L

• Harry Kane (England) — vs. Croatia (4-2)
• Antoine Semenyo (Ghana) — vs. Panama (1-0)

Mahdi Zakaria LAZRI |

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Football web writer creating digital sports content with a focus on news, analysis and stories that reflect passion, accuracy and objectivity.

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