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Pool A

This initial match at the iconic Azteca Stadium will mirror the opener from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's knockout stage record at the worldwide showpiece includes just one win, secured against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that squad and will be aiming for a third quarter-final berth as tournament hosts. The South African side, coached by experienced Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their first World Cup since they hosted, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho given against them for fielding an suspended player.

This will mark South Korea's eleventh successive finals appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their coach and guided them without a loss through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The final team in Group A will be the victor of a UEFA playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

The Canadian team have made it for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the most talented group of players in their history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which kind the group looks hinges mostly on whether the Italian national team make it through the European playoff (the remaining three 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 tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the past two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket without defeat from arguably the most straightforward of the UEFA 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 ended up in fourth in their third-round qualification section, were handed a significant advantage by being selected as a tournament host for the fourth round and secured qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected exclusively from the domestic league.

Group C

Scotland's return to the finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last outing, when they were defeated to Brazil and Morocco; the Haitian team take the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the elimination stage for the first time after 8 previous group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s only prior World Cup, in 1974, was remembered less for their three defeats 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 travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that featured a run of three successive losses, but there is minimal jeopardy in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear improvement. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the strongest of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter-attack, qualifying with a 100% win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a dismal condition, 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 thrashing 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 resulted to both group phase exits and a last-eight appearance. Their familiar defensive mindset has not altered: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia team and their squad is without clear superstars, but despite an shaky start to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their final two fixtures. The group’s fourth team will come from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After successive group phase exits, Die Mannschaft are no longer the bogeymen of old. The transition to a more attacking philosophy has introduced a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualifying, ending up second behind Argentina in South America. Although they scored 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, conceded a mere five.

Côte d’Ivoire live in a state of permanent declinism, where nothing is ever as successful 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. After an implausible continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals and conceding none.

The smallest country ever to qualify, the Curaçao team, were the fourth team picked, however, making the group look a lot far less daunting than it might have appeared.

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe 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 reliable player with his national side than at club level. They open against Japan, who will participate in their 8th consecutive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third straight finals appearance by dominating a straightforward qualification section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as dour as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different goalscorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA play-off (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 performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

Belgium and Egypt are moving on from the shadow of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualifying, scoring 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 qualify during their peak period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully done themselves justice on the global 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 undefeated.

A reserved place for Oceania essentially equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, 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 booked their place in North America next summer. Iran, who were defeated only once in a tricky third phase qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially