The 2026 FIFA World Cup is currently underway, having started on June 11, and will conclude with the final on July 11.
Hosted jointly by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, it is the largest World Cup ever, featuring 48 teams and 104 matches across 16 cities. The expanded format includes 12 groups before progressing to the knockout rounds, with football giants such as Argentina, Brazil, France, and England competing for the title.
In the above context, a video is being widely shared on social media in which we can allegedly hear the music of Shakira and see visuals of people in what appears to be a stadium ceremony with performances and fireworks.
The video is shared with a caption claiming that it shows scenes from the opening ceremony of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
A social media user shared the video with a caption that reads, “Shakira’s performance today was nothing short of legendary. The aura, the moves, the vocals-she turned the opening ceremony into her own concert. Simply epic.”
SouthCheck found that the claim is false. The viral video is AI-generated.
On closely observing the video, we could find that the visuals contain several indicators commonly associated with AI-generated imagery. Human figures in the crowd appear distorted, with faces lacking clear features and bodies merging unnaturally into one another.
Spectators in the stands display repetitive patterns that resemble duplicated digital templates rather than distinct individuals. Stadium screens are blurry and fail to show any readable text or realistic broadcast graphics. Additionally, the lighting effects and fireworks appear overly symmetrical and uniform, lacking the natural variation typically seen in live-event footage.
We further checked the video on Hive Moderation and found that the video is 99.3 per cent AI-generated.
Hence, we can ascertain that the viral video is AI-generated.
What Actually Happened at the Opening Ceremony
The 2026 FIFA World Cup opening ceremony featured three separate ceremonies across the three host nations, Mexico, the United States and Canada.
The main opening ceremony took place on 11 June at Mexico City Stadium (formerly Estadio Azteca) before the opening match between Mexico and South Africa. The event showcased Mexican culture, indigenous traditions, colourful dancers, fireworks, and musical performances by Mana, Los Ángeles Azules, Danny Ocean, J Balvin, and Belinda.
The highlight was Shakira and Burna Boy performing the official World Cup anthem, ‘Dai Dai.’
On 12 June, the United States ceremony in Los Angeles featured performances by Katy Perry, Future, Tyla, LISA, Anitta, and Rema, while Canada's ceremony in Toronto included Michael Bublé, Alanis Morissette, Alessia Cara, and Nora Fatehi, among others.
Overall, the opening celebrations combined football, music, and local culture to launch the first-ever 48-team FIFA World Cup, which runs from June 11 to July 19.
