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Group A

The opening fixture at the iconic Azteca venue will mirror the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's knockout phase history at the global tournament includes just a single victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. Their coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be targeting a third quarter-final appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their initial finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended footballer.

This will represent Korea Republic's 11th straight World Cup appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished in third place in the Best Player award when South Korea made the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their coach and led them unbeaten through a anything but straightforward qualification group. The final side in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA qualifying play-off featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

Canada have made it for the World Cup on two occasions and, although Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever finals point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of probably the best group of players in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the group looks hinges largely on whether the Italian national team progress through the UEFA playoff (the other 3 contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have got through the group stage in four of the past five tournaments and were last-eight participants at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket unbeaten from probably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players hoping to play at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having finished in fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were given a major advantage by being chosen as a tournament host for the fourth phase and clinched progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is selected entirely from the Qatari league.

Pool C

Scotland's return to the finals in 28 years bears a lot like their previous appearance, when they lost to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; the Haitian team take the spot of Norway. Their primary objective will be to make it to the knockout stage for the very first time after 8 previous group phase exits. Haiti’s sole prior World Cup, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited traveling support due to a travel ban involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualifying process that featured a run of three consecutive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a noticeable upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African sides, capable both of dominating rivals and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a dismal state, losing to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his message across and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their 6th finals. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a quarter-final appearance. Their familiar defensive approach has not changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most fluent Australian side and their squad lacks obvious stars, but in spite of an shaky start to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two matches. The pool's final team will come from the victor of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

After back-to-back group phase exits, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The transition to a more progressive philosophy has brought a vulnerability and the group initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualifying, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. Although they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline featuring Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a paltry five.

Côte d’Ivoire live in a state of permanent declinism, where nothing is ever quite successful as the golden generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. After an improbable continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, scoring 25 goals and conceding none.

The tiniest country ever to reach the finals, Curaçao, were the fourth team drawn, however, making the group look a lot far less intimidating than it might have been.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe lack the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, consistently looks a more reliable performer with his national side than at domestic level. They open against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth consecutive World Cup, and were by far the most dominant of the Asian nations in qualification, suffering one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia secured of a third consecutive finals appearance by dominating a manageable qualification group, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as defensive as some previous Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the European playoff (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will create a rematch of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and the Pharaohs are emerging from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualifying, finding the net eight times but letting in five in two wins over Wales, scoring easily at times, but also struggling to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most decorated side in African football history, but having failed to qualify during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite fulfilled their potential on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defensive unit that conceded just twice in 10 games that meant they qualified undefeated.

A reserved place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who cruised through qualifying, winning five games out of five, scoring 29 goals, nine of them by Chris Wood, but they are the lowest-ranked side to have booked their place in North America next summer. Iran, who lost only once in a tricky third-round qualification group, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially