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Pool A

The initial match at the famous Azteca venue will mirror the opener from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with Mexico. Mexico's elimination stage history at the worldwide tournament includes just a single victory, achieved against Bulgaria when they previously were hosts in 1986. Their manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be aiming for a third-ever quarter-final appearance as hosts. South Africa, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial World Cup since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a victory over Lesotho given against them for using an ineligible footballer.

This will mark South Korea's 11th consecutive finals appearance. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea reached the last four in 2002. Hong is now their manager and guided them without a loss through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The fourth side in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA playoff featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

The Canadian team have qualified for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not bring their first finals point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of arguably the best squad in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which favorable the group appears depends mostly on whether the Italian national team progress through the UEFA playoff (the other three contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have got through the group stage in four of the last five World Cups and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified without defeat from arguably the easiest of the UEFA groups and, with veterans like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players hoping to play at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having ended up in fourth in their third-round qualification section, were handed a major boost by being chosen as a tournament host for the fourth phase and secured progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is selected exclusively from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years looks a lot like their previous appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and Morocco; Haiti occupy the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the elimination phase for the very first time after eight prior group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s sole prior finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after testing positive in a drugs test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have restricted traveling support due to a travel ban from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that featured a streak of three successive losses, but there is little jeopardy in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a clear improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco appear the strongest of the north African sides, capable both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a perfect record.

Pool D

Early 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 friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will begin against Paraguay, who are competing in their 6th finals. They have won one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has led to both group-stage exits and a last-eight appearance. Their trademark cautious mindset has not altered: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most fluent Australia side and their squad is without clear superstars, but despite an iffy beginning to the third round of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side made it by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two matches. The group’s final team will come from the victor of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After successive group-stage eliminations, Germany are no longer the feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking style has brought a vulnerability and the group initially looked like presenting a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualification, finishing 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, protected by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Ivory Coast exist in a state of constant pessimism, where nothing is ever quite successful as the golden generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. After an implausible continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals without reply.

The smallest 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 could have been.

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps lack the star quality of previous Dutch generations, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualifying, always appears a more reliable player with his country's side than at club level. They open against the Japanese team, who will participate in their 8th successive World Cup, and were by some way the most dominant of the Asian sides in qualification, suffering one of their 16 games over the two groups, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by topping a straightforward qualification section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are maybe not as dour as some past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 separate scorers in qualifying. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress 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 stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and Egypt are moving on from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, finding goals freely 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 failed to qualify 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 allowed just 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 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 once in a tricky third-round qualification section, are on a travel ban, potentially