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Group A

This initial match at the iconic Azteca venue will mirror the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with El Tri. Mexico's knockout phase record at the global tournament features just one win, secured against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, played as an attacker in that team and will be targeting a third-ever last-eight appearance as hosts. The South African side, coached by veteran Belgian tactician Hugo Broos, qualified for their initial finals since they hosted, finishing above Nigeria and Benin despite seeing a victory over Lesotho given against them for fielding an ineligible footballer.

This will mark South Korea's 11th successive World Cup qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo played in four of those, and came in third place in the Best Player voting when South Korea made the semi-final in 2002. Hong is now their coach and guided them unbeaten through a anything but easy qualification group. The fourth 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 made it for the global finals on two occasions and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden goal, it did not deliver their first point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of probably the best squad in their history, with key men like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. How favorable the draw appears hinges largely on whether Italy progress through the UEFA play-off (the other 3 contenders are Bosnia and Herzegovina, Northern Ireland, and Wales).

Following failing to qualify in 1998 and 2002, Switzerland have navigated the group stage in four of the past five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the last 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 aiming to feature at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having finished fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were handed a significant boost by being selected as a host for the final phase and secured qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is selected entirely from the domestic league.

Pool C

Scotland's first World Cup in 28 years looks a lot like their previous outing, when they lost to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; Haiti take the place of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the knockout phase for the very first time after eight previous group-stage eliminations. Haiti’s only previous World Cup, in 1974, was notable less for their three defeats 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 deported. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third coach in a qualification campaign that included a streak of three successive defeats, but there is minimal risk in South American qualifying these days. He has presided over a noticeable improvement. Last-four participants in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming opponents and playing on the counter, qualifying with a 100% win record.

Group D

Early last year, the United States 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 seemingly begun to get his ideas understood and in November the USA defeated Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will start against Paraguay, who are playing in their 6th World Cup. They have secured one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has resulted to both group phase exits and a last-eight appearance. Their trademark cautious approach hasn't altered: they managed only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most fluent Australian team and their squad lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an iffy beginning to the third phase of Asian qualification, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by beating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two matches. The group’s fourth team will come from the victor of Europe’s Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

After back-to-back group-stage exits, 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 huge challenge 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 defence featuring Willian Pacho of Paris Saint-Germain and Piero Hincapié of Arsenal, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Ivory Coast live in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever as good as the glorious generation of 15-20 years ago. But since taking charge during the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations, manager Emerse Faé has proved inspirational. After an improbable continental success on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals without none.

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

Group F

Ronald Koeman’s Dutch side perhaps do not possess the star quality of past Dutch generations, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, always appears a more reliable player with his country's side than at club level. They begin against Japan, who will play in their 8th successive World Cup, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian nations in qualification, losing one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a total goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third straight World Cup appearance by dominating a manageable qualifying group, picking up 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as dour as certain previous 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 repeat of the group stage game in Dortmund in 1974 when Johan Cruyff first performed the famous Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and Egypt are emerging 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 easily at times, but also laboring to a 1-1 draw away to Kazakhstan.

Egypt are the most successful side in African history, but having not managed 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 allowed just twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified undefeated.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively meant a spot at the finals for New Zealand, who cruised through qualifying, 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 secured their place in North America next summer. Iran, who were defeated only once in a tricky third-round qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, potentially