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Group A

The initial match at the iconic Azteca venue will replay the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's elimination stage record at the global tournament features just one victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. Their manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be aiming for a third quarter-final berth as tournament hosts. South Africa, led by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first World Cup since they hosted, ending above Nigeria and Benin even after having a victory over Lesotho given against them for fielding an suspended player.

It will represent South Korea's eleventh successive World Cup appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and came third in the Best Player voting when South Korea reached the semi-final in 2002. He is now their coach and guided them without a loss through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The fourth team in Group A will be the victor of a European qualifying play-off featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

Canada have qualified for the World Cup twice and, although Qatar 2022 brought their maiden finals goal, it did not deliver their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of arguably the most talented squad in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the draw looks hinges mostly on whether the Italian national team make it through the UEFA play-off (the remaining 3 contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have got through the initial phase in four of the past five tournaments and were last-eight participants at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket unbeaten from probably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast individuals hoping to feature at their fourth finals. Qatar, having ended up in fourth in their third-round qualifying group, were handed a major advantage by being selected as a host for the fourth round and secured progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they were defeated to the Seleção and Morocco; Haiti occupy the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the knockout phase for the very first time after eight previous group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s sole prior World Cup, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the fate that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have restricted traveling support due to a travel ban involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that featured a run of three consecutive defeats, but there is minimal risk in South American qualification these days. He has presided over a noticeable upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African sides, capable both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% record.

Pool D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a poor state, losing to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches. But over the last year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently 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 playing in their 6th World Cup. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a record that has led to both group phase exits and a quarter-final place. Their familiar defensive mindset hasn't changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australian team and their roster lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an iffy start to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two fixtures. The group’s final team will come from the winner of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following back-to-back group-stage eliminations, Germany are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking style has introduced a fragility and the group initially looked like presenting a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualification, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. While they netted only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline featuring Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Côte d’Ivoire live in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever quite good as the golden generation of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, manager Emerse Faé has proved transformative. Following an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualification, scoring 25 goals without reply.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe do not possess the star quality of past Dutch eras, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, always looks a more reliable performer with his national side than at club level. They open against Japan, who will participate in their eighth consecutive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualification section, 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 staggering 14 separate goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the European play-off (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will set up a rematch of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and Egypt are moving on from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but letting in five in two wins over Wales, scoring 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 not managed to reach the finals during their golden 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 only twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively 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 lost once in a difficult third-round qualification group, are on a travel ban, potentially