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Pool A

This opening fixture at the historic Azteca Stadium will echo the opener from 2010, when South Africa drew 1-1 with Mexico. Mexico's elimination stage record at the worldwide tournament features just a single victory, secured against Bulgaria when they last hosted in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that squad and will be targeting a third last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. South Africa, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first World Cup since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a win over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an ineligible footballer.

This will represent Korea Republic's eleventh straight finals qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and came third in the Best Player award when South Korea made the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their coach and guided them without a loss through a far from easy qualifying section. The fourth side in Group A will be the winner of a European qualifying play-off involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Pool B

Canada have qualified for the global finals on two occasions and, although Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not bring their first point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of arguably the best group of players in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How kind the group appears hinges mostly on whether the Italian national team make it through the European play-off (the other three teams are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

After failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have navigated the initial phase in four of the past five tournaments and were last-eight participants at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified without defeat from probably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, have individuals hoping to feature at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having finished fourth in their third-round qualification section, were handed a significant advantage by being selected as a host for the final round and clinched progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn exclusively from the Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland return to the World Cup in 28 years looks a lot like their previous appearance, when they lost to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; the Haitian team take the place of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the elimination stage for the very first time after 8 prior group-stage exits. Haiti’s only previous World Cup, in 1974, was remembered less for their three losses than for the ordeal that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a doping test, was assaulted by Haitian army officers before being sent back. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying process that included a run of three successive defeats, but there is minimal risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the strongest of the north African nations, able both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a perfect win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a poor condition, losing 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 friendlies. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are playing in their 6th finals. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a last-eight place. Their familiar defensive approach hasn't changed: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualification.

This is not the most fluent Australian team and their squad lacks clear stars, but in spite of an iffy beginning to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under immense pressure in their last two matches. The pool's final team will emerge 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 feared force of old. The shift to a more attacking style has introduced a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualifying, finishing in second place 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, let in a mere five.

Ivory Coast live in a state of constant declinism, where nothing is ever quite successful as the glorious generation of 15-20 years ago. But since assuming control during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, head coach Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. Following an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualifying, netting 25 goals without reply.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side perhaps lack the galacticos of past Dutch eras, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, consistently looks a more reliable performer with his national side than at domestic level. They begin 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 qualifying, losing one of their 16 games over the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight finals berth by dominating a manageable qualifying section, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are maybe not as defensive as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a staggering 14 different scorers in qualification. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the UEFA 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 Egypt are moving on from the legacy of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualifying, 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 football history, but having failed to reach the finals during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully done themselves justice on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defensive unit that allowed only twice in 10 games that meant they qualified undefeated.

A reserved place for Oceania essentially meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised through qualification, winning five games out of five, netting 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. Iran, who lost only once in a tricky third-round qualification section, are on a travel ban, potentially