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Group A

This first fixture at the iconic Azteca Stadium will echo the first game from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's knockout stage history at the global tournament includes just one win, secured against Bulgaria when they previously were hosts in 1986. Their manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be targeting a third-ever quarter-final appearance as hosts. The South African side, led by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their initial finals since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an suspended footballer.

This will mark South Korea's 11th successive finals qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and came in third place in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the semi-final in 2002. He is now their manager and guided them without a loss through a far from straightforward qualifying group. The final side in Group A will be the victor of a UEFA playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

The Canadian team have made it for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not deliver their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the most talented squad in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the group looks depends largely on whether Italy progress through the UEFA play-off (the remaining 3 contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have navigated the initial phase in four of the past five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified unbeaten from probably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players hoping to feature at their fourth World Cups. The Qatari team, having finished fourth in their third phase qualification group, were given a major advantage by being selected as a tournament host for the final phase and clinched qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected exclusively from the Qatari league.

Pool C

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

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualification process that featured a streak of three successive losses, but there is minimal risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter, qualifying with a 100% record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the United States seemed in a poor condition, losing to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly begun to get his ideas understood and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against Paraguay, who are playing in their sixth finals. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has resulted to both group phase exits and a last-eight appearance. Their familiar defensive mindset has not changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most fluent Australia team and their roster lacks clear stars, but despite an iffy beginning to the third round of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their final two fixtures. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

Following back-to-back group phase eliminations, Germany are no longer the feared force of old. The transition to a more progressive style has brought a fragility and the group initially looked like posing a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the revelations of qualification, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. Although they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a defence featuring Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, let in a mere five.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever quite good as the golden squad of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, manager Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. After an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, netting 25 goals and conceding none.

The smallest country ever to reach the finals, the Curaçao team, were the final team drawn, though, making the group look a lot less daunting than it might have appeared.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps do not possess the galacticos of past Dutch generations, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, always appears a more effective performer with his country's side than at domestic level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will participate in their 8th successive finals, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualification, suffering one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by dominating a manageable qualification group, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as defensive as certain previous Tunisian teams; they had a staggering 14 different goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the UEFA play-off (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will create a rematch of the group stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Group G

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

Egypt are the most decorated side in African football history, but having not managed to reach the finals 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 attacking threat, but it was a defence that allowed only twice in 10 games that meant they qualified undefeated.

A reserved place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who sailed through qualification, winning five games out of five, netting 29 goals, nine of them by Chris Wood, but they are the lowest-ranked side to have secured their place in North America next summer. Iran, who were defeated only once in a tricky third phase qualification section, are on a travel ban, potentially