🔗 Share this article

Pool A

This opening game at the famous Azteca venue will echo the opener from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout stage history at the worldwide tournament features just a single win, secured against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. Their manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be aiming for a third-ever last-eight berth as hosts. The South African side, coached by veteran Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial finals since hosting, ending above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a win over Lesotho given against them for fielding an ineligible footballer.

It will represent South Korea's eleventh straight finals appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and came third in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the last four in 2002. Hong is now their coach and guided them unbeaten through a far from straightforward qualification section. The fourth team in Group A will be the victor of a European playoff involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

Canada have qualified for the global finals twice and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the most talented squad in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which favorable the draw looks hinges largely on whether Italy progress 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 navigated the initial phase in four of the last five World Cups and were last-eight participants at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified without defeat from probably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have players aiming to play at their fourth World Cups. The Qatari team, having ended up fourth in their third-round qualifying group, were handed a major boost by being chosen as a host for the final phase and clinched qualification with a 2-1 victory over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's return to the finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they were defeated to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; Haiti take the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the knockout phase for the first time after eight previous group-stage exits. Haiti’s only prior World Cup, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats than for the fate that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a doping test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have restricted away support due to travel restrictions from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualifying process that included a run of three successive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a noticeable improvement. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African nations, able both of dominating rivals and playing on the counter, qualifying with a perfect win record.

Pool D

At the start of last year, the United States seemed in a dismal state, 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 apparently begun to get his message across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will begin against Paraguay, who are competing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the previous five, a statistic that has resulted to both group phase eliminations and a quarter-final place. Their trademark cautious 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 squad lacks obvious superstars, but despite an iffy beginning to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two fixtures. The pool's final team will emerge from the victor of the European Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After back-to-back group phase exits, Die Mannschaft are no longer the feared force of old. The transition to a more attacking style has introduced a fragility and the draw initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualifying, finishing in second place behind Argentina in South America. While they scored only 14 goals in 18 games, a backline including Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful as the glorious 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 qualifying, scoring 25 goals and conceding none.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps lack the star quality of past Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, consistently appears a more reliable player with his country's side than at domestic level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their 8th consecutive finals, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian sides in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games over the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight World Cup berth by topping a manageable qualifying section, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as defensive as some past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the European play-off (against Ukraine in the semi, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will create a repeat of the group game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are emerging from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, scoring 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 history, but having not managed to reach the finals during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite done themselves justice on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defensive unit that conceded just twice in 10 games that ensured 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 FIFA-ranked side to have secured their place in North America next summer. Team Melli, who were defeated only once in a tricky third phase qualification section, are on a travel ban, potentially