🔗 Share this article

Pool A

This opening fixture at the iconic Azteca venue will mirror the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's elimination phase history at the worldwide showpiece includes just one victory, secured against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be aiming for a third quarter-final berth as tournament hosts. The South African side, coached by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial finals since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin even after seeing a win over Lesotho awarded against them for fielding an ineligible player.

It will represent South Korea's eleventh successive World Cup qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and finished in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea reached the semi-final in 2002. He is now their coach and led them unbeaten through a anything but straightforward qualifying group. The final side in Group A will be the winner of a European playoff involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

Canada have made it for the World Cup twice and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their first goal, it did not bring their first point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably the most talented squad in their nation's history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the draw looks depends mostly on whether the Italian national team make it through the UEFA playoff (the remaining three contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, the Swiss have got through the group stage in four of the last five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side booked their ticket unbeaten from arguably the most straightforward of the UEFA groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast individuals hoping to feature at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having finished in fourth in their third phase qualification group, 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 Qatari league.

Group C

Scotland first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they were defeated to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; Haiti occupy the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to make it to the elimination stage for the first time after 8 previous group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s only previous finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three losses than for the fate that happened to 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 from the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third manager in a qualifying campaign that featured a run of three successive losses, but there is minimal risk in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a noticeable upturn in form. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter-attack, securing qualification with a 100% 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 friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their sixth World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has led to both group-stage eliminations and a quarter-final place. Their familiar defensive mindset has not changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most free-flowing Australia side and their roster lacks obvious stars, but despite an shaky beginning to the third round of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side made it by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two fixtures. The pool's fourth team will emerge from the victor of the European playoff C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool 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 group initially looked like posing a huge test to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the revelations of qualifying, finishing second behind Argentina in South America. While they netted 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, let in a paltry five.

Ivory Coast live in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever as 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. After an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualification, netting 25 goals and conceding none.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe do not possess the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, consistently looks a more reliable player with his country's side than at domestic level. They open against Japan, who will participate in their 8th successive finals, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian nations in qualifying, suffering one of their 16 games across the two groups, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by dominating a straightforward qualifying section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as defensive as certain past Tunisian teams; they had a staggering 14 different goalscorers in qualifying. 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 rematch of the group stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Pool G

The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are moving on from the shadow of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualification, scoring the net eight times but conceding five in two wins over Wales, finding goals 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 failed to qualify during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never quite fulfilled their potential on the world stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them attacking threat, but it was a defence that conceded only twice in 10 games that meant they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively equated to a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who sailed through qualification, winning five games out of five, scoring 29 goals, nine of them by Chris Wood, but they are the lowest-ranked side to have booked their place in North America next summer. Team Melli, who lost only once in a difficult third phase qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially