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Pool A

This opening game at the iconic Azteca Stadium will mirror the opener from 2010, when Bafana Bafana tied 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's elimination phase history at the global showpiece features just a single win, achieved against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be aiming for a third-ever quarter-final appearance as tournament hosts. South Africa, coached by veteran Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first finals since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for using an suspended player.

This will mark Korea Republic's eleventh successive finals appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and came in third place in the Best Player voting when South Korea reached the last four in 2002. Hong is now their coach and led them without a loss through a anything but easy qualification group. The final side in Group A will be the victor of a UEFA playoff involving 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 maiden goal, it did not deliver their first point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the most talented group of players in their nation's history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which favorable the group looks hinges largely on whether the Italian national team progress through the UEFA playoff (the remaining 3 teams 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 last five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket unbeaten from probably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players hoping to feature at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having finished in fourth in their third phase qualification group, were handed a major boost by being selected as a host for the final round and clinched progress with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is selected entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's first World Cup in 28 years looks a lot like their previous outing, when they were defeated to the Seleção and Morocco; the Haitian team take the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the knockout stage for the first time after 8 prior group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s only previous World Cup, in 1974, was remembered 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 sent back. They will have limited away support due to a travel ban involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualification process that included a streak of three successive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming opponents 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 friendly matches. But over the last year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his message across and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their 6th World Cup. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a record that has led to both group-stage eliminations and a last-eight appearance. Their familiar defensive approach hasn't altered: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australian team and their squad lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an shaky start to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side made it by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two fixtures. The pool's fourth team will come from the victor of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

Following successive group phase exits, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The transition to a more attacking philosophy has brought a vulnerability and the group initially looked like presenting a massive test 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 defence including Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a paltry five.

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

The smallest country ever to qualify, the Curaçao team, were the fourth team drawn, though, making the group look a lot far less daunting than it could have been.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps lack the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they secured qualification unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, consistently appears a more effective 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 some way the most impressive of the Asian nations in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side secured of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by topping a manageable qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as defensive as some past Tunisian teams; they had a staggering 14 different scorers 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 game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are emerging from the shadow of golden 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 laboring to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most successful side in African history, but having failed to qualify 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 meant they qualified unbeaten.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively meant 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 FIFA-ranked side to have secured their place in North America next summer. Team Melli, who were defeated once in a difficult third phase qualifying group, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially