Mexico got the World Cup party started as the co-hosts swept away South Africa 2-0 on Thursday in a tempestuous clash with three red cards as the ​pyrotechnic smoke of the opening ceremony gave way to a cloud of red mist at a rocking Azteca stadium, Reuters reported. 

The match fired the starting gun for the quadrennial extravaganza, yet the scrappy encounter will likely be remembered not for its thrilling football but for its flurry of dismissals.