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Group A

This opening game at the famous Azteca Stadium will mirror the first game from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's knockout phase history at the worldwide showpiece features just a single victory, secured against Bulgaria when they previously were hosts in 1986. Their coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that squad and will be aiming for a third-ever last-eight appearance as hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their first finals since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho given against them for using an suspended footballer.

It will mark Korea Republic's eleventh successive finals appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Best Player voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their coach and guided them without a loss through a far from straightforward qualifying group. The fourth team in Group A will be the victor of a European playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

The Canadian team have made it for the World Cup on two occasions and, although Qatar 2022 yielded their first finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of arguably the best squad in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the draw appears hinges largely on whether the Italian national team make it through the UEFA play-off (the remaining three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have got through the group stage in four of the last five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified unbeaten from probably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have individuals hoping to play at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having finished in fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were given a significant boost by being chosen as a host for the final phase and secured progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn exclusively from the Qatari league.

Pool C

Scotland first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last outing, when they lost to the Seleção and Morocco; Haiti occupy the place of Norway. Their primary objective will be to progress to the elimination stage for the very first time after eight previous group phase exits. Haiti’s sole previous World Cup, in 1974, was notable less for their three losses than for the fate that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a drugs test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited away support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualification process that included a run of three successive losses, but there is minimal risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a noticeable improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the best of the north African nations, capable both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter-attack, qualifying with a 100% win record.

Pool D

At the start of last year, the United States seemed in a dismal state, suffering defeats 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 defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against Paraguay, who are competing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a record that has led to both group-stage exits and a last-eight appearance. Their familiar defensive approach hasn't changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia team and their roster lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an iffy beginning to the third round of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two matches. The pool's fourth team will come from the winner of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After successive group-stage eliminations, Die Mannschaft are no longer the bogeymen of old. The transition to a more progressive philosophy has brought a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the revelations of qualification, finishing second 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, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a paltry five.

Côte d’Ivoire live in a state of constant 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, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. Following an improbable continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualification, scoring 25 goals and conceding reply.

The tiniest country ever to qualify, the Curaçao team, were the final team drawn, however, making the group look a lot less daunting than it could have appeared.

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side maybe do not possess the star quality of past Dutch eras, but they secured qualification unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, consistently looks a more reliable player with his national side than at club level. They open against the Japanese team, who will play in their eighth successive finals, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian sides in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight finals berth by dominating a straightforward qualifying group, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as defensive as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 separate goalscorers in qualification. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA playoff (against Ukraine in the semi, 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 executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and the Pharaohs are moving on from the legacy of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, scoring the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, finding goals freely at times, but also laboring to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most decorated side in African history, but having failed to reach the finals during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully fulfilled their potential on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defensive unit that conceded only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified unbeaten.

A guaranteed place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who cruised through qualification, 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. Team Melli, who lost only once in a difficult third phase qualifying section, are on a travel ban, potentially