The first day of the 2026 World Cup is in the books, and there are just the 101 matches and 37 days to go before the big finale in New Jersey.Given there had already been plenty to discuss about the tournament off the field, it was hardly surprising that Mexico and South Africa added more on it, before South Korea’s Hwang In-beom’s sublime finish set an early benchmark for goal of the tournament in his side’s 2-1 win over the Czech Republic.Aside from Shakira’s return to the fold, the main talking point from the opening match was the three red cards handed out by referee Wilton Sampaio, and that’s where we’re going to start our five things to know heading into day two.Seeing redThe speed with which Sampaio went to his pocket does not bode well for the next six weeks, but the modern game has long since stopped resembling the one most of us grew up playing.Still, it would take something special to outdo the 2006 World Cup in Germany, where 32 teams shared a record 28 reds, a number no doubt boosted by the four given to Portugal and the Netherlands in their infamous clash, and six needed to control Italy v the USA and Croatia against Australia in the same tournament.Only twice in the history of the game has a World Cup been sending-off free, and that was in 1950 and 1970, when you could still essentially assault an opponent and get a wagging finger from the referee as your only punishment. Happy days.