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Pool A

This first match at the famous Azteca venue will echo the first game from 2010, when Bafana Bafana drew 1-1 with Mexico. The Mexican team's knockout stage record at the global tournament features just one victory, secured against Bulgaria when they previously hosted in 1986. The manager, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be aiming for a third-ever last-eight appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by experienced Belgian manager Hugo Broos, secured their place for their first World Cup since they hosted, ending above Nigeria and Benin despite having a victory over Lesotho given against them for using an suspended footballer.

This will mark South Korea's eleventh straight World Cup appearance. Icon Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and came in third place in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. He is now their manager and guided them unbeaten through a anything but easy qualifying group. The fourth team in Group A will be the victor of a European qualifying play-off featuring the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

Canada have made it for the global finals twice and, while Qatar 2022 yielded their maiden finals goal, it did not deliver their first-ever finals point. Jesse Marsch is the head coach of probably 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 kind the draw looks hinges largely on whether the Italian national team make it through the European play-off (the remaining three contenders 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 last five World Cups 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, have players hoping to play at their fourth finals. The Qatari team, having ended up in fourth in their third phase qualifying group, were given a major advantage by being chosen as a host for the fourth phase and secured progress with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s entire squad is drawn exclusively from the domestic league.

Group C

Scotland return to the World Cup in 28 years bears a lot like their last appearance, when they lost to the Seleção and the Atlas Lions; Haiti occupy the spot of Norway. Their aim will be to progress to the elimination stage for the first time after eight previous group phase eliminations. Haiti’s only prior finals, in 1974, was remembered less for their three defeats 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 deported. They will have limited traveling support due to a travel ban involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti took over as Brazil’s third coach in a qualification process that featured a streak of three consecutive defeats, but there is little risk in South American qualifying these days. He has overseen a noticeable upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African sides, able both of dominating opponents and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a 100% record.

Pool D

At the start of 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 friendlies. But over the past year, Mauricio Pochettino has apparently begun to get his message across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before thrashing Uruguay 5-1 in exhibition games. They will begin against the Paraguayan side, who are competing in their 6th finals. They have secured one game at each of the prior five, a statistic that has resulted to both group-stage eliminations and a quarter-final appearance. Their familiar cautious approach has not changed: they scored only 14 goals in their 18 games in South American qualifying.

This is not the most free-flowing Australian team and their roster is without clear superstars, but despite 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 pool's final team will come from the winner of the European Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Pool E

After successive group phase eliminations, Die Mannschaft are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more progressive philosophy has introduced a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a huge challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. Ecuador were the surprise package 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, shielded by Chelsea’s Moisés Caicedo, conceded a mere five.

Ivory Coast live in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever quite successful as the golden squad 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 implausible continental triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were clinical in qualifying, scoring 25 goals and conceding none.

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

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe lack the star quality of previous Dutch eras, but they qualified without losing and Memphis Depay, who scored eight goals in qualification, consistently looks a more effective performer with his national side than at club level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their 8th consecutive finals, and were by far the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, losing one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

Tunisia made sure of a third consecutive World Cup appearance by topping a manageable qualification section, accumulating 28 points of a available 30. Sami Trabelsi’s team are perhaps not as dour as certain past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 different scorers in qualification. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the European playoff (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

The Belgian Red Devils and Egypt are emerging from the legacy of golden generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were erratic in qualification, finding the net eight times but letting in 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 decorated side in African history, but having failed to qualify during their golden period 15-20 years ago, they have never fully done themselves justice 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 unbeaten.

A guaranteed place for Oceania effectively equated to a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who sailed 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. Team Melli, who lost only once in a difficult third phase qualification group, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly