🔗 Share this article

Group A

This initial match at the historic Azteca venue will replay the first game from 2010, when South Africa tied 1-1 with El Tri. The Mexican team's knockout stage record at the worldwide showpiece includes just a single win, secured against Bulgaria when they last were hosts in 1986. The coach, Javier Aguirre, was a forward in that team and will be aiming for a third quarter-final appearance as tournament hosts. The South African side, led by veteran Belgian manager Hugo Broos, qualified for their first World Cup since hosting, finishing above Nigeria and Benin even after having a victory over Lesotho awarded against them for using an suspended player.

It will mark South Korea's eleventh straight finals qualification. Legend Hong Myung-bo featured in four of those, and finished third in the Golden Ball voting when South Korea made the last four in 2002. Hong is now their coach and led them unbeaten through a far from easy qualifying group. The final side in Group A will be the winner of a UEFA playoff involving the Czech Republic, Denmark, North Macedonia, or the Republic of Ireland.

Group B

Canada have qualified for the global finals twice and, although Qatar 2022 brought their first finals goal, it did not deliver their first point. Jesse Marsch is the manager of arguably the best group of players in their nation's history, with stars like Jonathan David at Juventus and Alphonso Davies at Bayern Munich. The extent to which favorable the group looks hinges mostly on whether Italy progress 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 got through the initial phase in four of the past five tournaments and were quarter-finalists at the last two European Championships. Murat Yakin’s side qualified unbeaten from arguably the easiest of the UEFA qualifying groups and, with experienced campaigners like Ricardo Rodriguez and Granit Xhaka, boast players aiming to play at their fourth World Cups. Qatar, having finished fourth in their third phase qualifying section, were handed a significant boost by being chosen as a host for the final phase and clinched qualification with a 2-1 win over the UAE. Julen Lopetegui’s squad is drawn exclusively from the domestic league.

Group C

Scotland's first finals in 28 years bears a lot like their last outing, when they were defeated to Brazil and the Atlas Lions; Haiti occupy the place of Norway. Their primary objective will be to progress to the knockout phase for the first time after eight previous group phase eliminations. Haiti’s only prior finals, in 1974, was notable less for their three losses than for the fate that happened to midfielder Ernst Jean-Joseph who, after failing a drugs test, was beaten by Haitian army officers before being deported. They will have limited traveling support due to travel restrictions involving the USA.

Carlo Ancelotti became Brazil’s third coach in a qualification campaign that included a run of three successive losses, but there is minimal risk in South American qualification these days. He has overseen a clear upturn in form. Semi-finalists in Qatar in 2022, Morocco look the best of the north African nations, able both of overwhelming rivals and playing on the counter, securing qualification with a perfect win record.

Group D

At the start of last year, the USA seemed in a poor condition, suffering defeats to Panama and Canada in the Concacaf Nations League and to Turkey and Switzerland in friendlies. But over the last year, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly begun to get his ideas across and in November the USA beat Paraguay before routing Uruguay 5-1 in friendlies. They will start against Paraguay, who are competing in their sixth finals. They have secured one game at each of the previous five, a record that has resulted to both group-stage exits and a last-eight place. Their familiar cautious mindset hasn't altered: 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 lacks clear superstars, but in spite of an shaky beginning to the third phase of Asian qualifying, Tony Popovic’s side qualified by defeating Japan at home and Saudi Arabia away under intense pressure in their last two matches. The group’s final team will come from the winner of the European Play-off C (Kosovo, Romania, Slovakia, or Turkey).

Group E

After back-to-back group phase eliminations, Germany are no longer the bogeymen of old. The shift to a more attacking style has brought a vulnerability and the draw initially looked like posing a massive challenge to Julian Nagelsmann’s side. The Ecuadorian team were the surprise package of qualifying, ending up in second place behind Argentina in South America. Although 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.

Côte d’Ivoire live in a state of permanent pessimism, where nothing is ever as successful as the golden 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 triumph on home soil, Côte d’Ivoire were ruthless in qualifying, scoring 25 goals without none.

The smallest country ever to reach the finals, Curaçao, were the fourth team picked, though, making the group look a lot far less daunting than it might have appeared.

Pool F

Ronald Koeman’s Netherlands side maybe lack the star quality of past Dutch eras, but they qualified unbeaten and Memphis Depay, who bagged eight goals in qualifying, consistently appears a more reliable player with his country's side than at club level. They begin against the Japanese team, who will play in their 8th successive World Cup, and were by some way the most impressive of the Asian sides in qualifying, suffering one of their 16 games across the two phases, with a combined goal difference of 54-3.

The Tunisian side made sure of a third straight World Cup appearance by topping a straightforward qualifying section, picking up 28 points of a possible 30. Sami Trabelsi’s squad are perhaps not as dour as some past Tunisian sides; they had a remarkable 14 separate goalscorers in qualification. If Graham Potter’s Sweden progress through the European playoff (against Ukraine in the semi-final, 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 executed the iconic Cruyff Turn.

Group G

Belgium and the Pharaohs are moving on from the legacy of their most talented generations. Rudi Garcia’s Belgium were inconsistent in qualification, finding the net eight times but letting in five in two wins over Wales, scoring freely at times, but also struggling 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 fully fulfilled their potential on the global stage. Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush give them cutting edge, but it was a defence that conceded just twice in 10 games that ensured they qualified unbeaten.

A reserved place for Oceania effectively meant a spot at the finals for the All Whites, who cruised 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 were defeated only once in a difficult third-round qualifying section, are on a list of restricted nations, possibly