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Group A

The opening game at the historic Azteca Stadium will replay the opener from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's knockout stage history at the global showpiece features just one win, achieved 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-ever last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their first World Cup since they hosted, ending above Nigeria and Benin even after having a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for using an suspended footballer.

It will represent South Korea's eleventh straight finals appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball award when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their manager and guided them without a loss through a far from easy qualification group. The final side in Group A will be the winner of a European playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

The Canadian team have qualified for the global finals twice and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not bring their first-ever point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the most talented squad in their nation's history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which favorable the draw appears depends largely on whether the Italian national team progress through the European play-off (the other 3 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 past five tournaments and were quarter-finalists 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 play at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having ended up in fourth in their third-round qualification group, were given a significant advantage by being selected as a host for the fourth round and clinched progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn entirely from the Qatari league.

Pool C

Scotland's first World Cup in 28 years looks a lot like their last appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; Haiti take the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the elimination stage for the first time after 8 previous group phase exits. Haiti’s sole previous finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three losses than for the fate that befell midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping 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 coach in a qualifying process that featured a run of three consecutive defeats, but there is minimal jeopardy in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a clear upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African sides, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a perfect record.

Pool D

Early last year, the USA seemed in a poor state, suffering defeats to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendly matches. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his message understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a last-eight place. Their trademark cautious approach has not changed: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australian side and their roster is without clear stars, but despite an shaky beginning to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their final two fixtures. The pool's fourth team will come from the victor of Europe’s playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After successive group phase eliminations, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more attacking style has brought a fragility and the group initially looked like posing a massive test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualifying, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. Although they scored 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.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of constant 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, head coach Emerse Faé has proved transformative. Following an implausible continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, netting 25 goals without reply.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe do not possess the star quality of previous Dutch eras, but they secured qualification without losing and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualification, consistently appears a more effective player with his national side than at domestic level. They begin against Japan, who will play in their 8th successive finals, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian sides in qualification, losing one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia secured of a third straight finals berth by topping a manageable qualifying group, picking up 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as dour as some past Tunisian teams; they had a staggering 14 different scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden make it through the UEFA play-off (against Ukraine in the semi-final, then either Poland or Albania in the final), that will set up 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 moving on from the legacy of their most talented 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 struggling to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most decorated side in African football history, but having not managed to qualify during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite fulfilled their potential on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defence that allowed just twice in 10 games that meant they qualified undefeated.

A reserved place for Oceania effectively 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-ranked side to have secured their place in North America next summer. Team Melli, who lost once in a tricky third phase qualification section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially